With no military help, Okanagan MP calls for national wildfire fighting force

An Okanagan M.P. is calling on the federal government to create a national wildfire fighting force, to assist the efforts by the provinces and territories.

South Okanagan-West Kootenay NDP MP Richard Cannings says Canada’s Chief of the Defense Staff has recently said that the military won’t have the capacity to help with this summer’s fires, and a national firefighting force could help fill the gap.

“Canadians are already seeing devastating wildfires, and we’re expecting even more this summer,” Cannings said. “With families across the country already being forced to flee their homes, kids unable to play outside because of wildfire smoke, and communities stretched thin trying to fight these fires, Canadians expect their government to have a plan to keep them safe. But even after last year’s record-breaking wildfire season, the Liberals are delaying action. People can’t afford more delays when the worst of the wildfire season is around the corner.”

The veteran MP, who is the NDP’s emergency preparedness and climate resilience critic, said a poll earlier this year showed that three out of four Canadians support the idea of a national wildfire-fighting department.

“The Liberals and the Conservatives before them have left it up to the military to fill the gaps in handling natural disasters. But the problem is, with climate change, we’re seeing more frequent and extreme weather events,” Cannings remarked.

“The Liberals should have created a wildfire task force years ago. The NDP is calling on the prime minister to start putting Canadian communities first by creating a wildfire task force that will help save lives.”