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The New Brunswick government is asking the public and local governments to prepare for wildfire season following the launch of the FireSmart program.
In February, the federal and provincial governments announced about $40 million to increase New Brunswick’s wildfire preparedness, including with the FireSmart program.
The money was also used for new equipment like hoses, tanks, drones, trailers, and upskill training for personnel.
“Last year, we were fortunate not to have what we might call a bad day, but to be clear, one bad day in the firefighting world can ignite a catastrophic series of events, as we have seen across the country and around the world,” said Natural Resources and Energy Development Minister John Herron during a press conference Tuesday.
Herron said New Brunswick firefighters were mobilized 27 times, with 180 personnel deployed to assist with wildfires in places like Jasper, AB.
“Realistically, we cannot prevent all wildfires, but we can do things to mitigate their impact on us, and our communities, and increase our resilience to wildfires,” Herron said.
For FireSmart coordinator and wildfire prevention officer Roger Collet, fire safety and preparedness begins at home.
The program also offers tips for how to protect a home ahead of a wildfire, all of which are available online.
“We’ve gone from a handful of presentations per year to more than 30 presentations and community events in 2024,” he said during the press conference, adding this year is expected to be bigger yet. “Part of the $40 million federal and provincial funding that the minister mentioned has been allocated to FireSmart to help make our community more resilient to wildfires.”
It includes municipalities, Collet explained, allocating funds to allow it to create resiliency plans.
“These plans will identify critical infrastructure in high-risk areas within their communities that would most severely be impacted during a wildfire,” Collet said. “These resiliency plans will also indicate what mitigation can be done to make these important parts of the community more resilient in the event of a wildfire.”
About $15 million of the overall amount has been allocated specifically for FireSmart, Collet confirmed.
Municipalities can apply for a plan online.
In 2023, the Stein Lake region in Bocabec saw one of the biggest forest fires in New Brunswick in the last decade, burning more than 500 hectares.
It destroyed one home and forced the evacuation of more than 100 others.
An investigation by The Courier revealed that the provincial government failed to issue an Alert Ready during the wildfire, something Mayor Brad Henderson has said was never offered as an option to the local officials.
Email exchanges obtained through a Right to Information and Protection of Privacy Act request showed the province felt it didn’t have enough information to issue an Alert Ready notification.
In December, The Courier asked whether the after-action report could be provided to see what lessons or recommendations had been made in the wake of the fire, which was nearly two years ago, but said it was not completed.
Officials confirmed Tuesday the report is nearing completion and it is expected to be available in the spring.
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