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B.C. wildfire evacuees help out the crews protecting their homes

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A group of evacuees forced from their homes by the Keremeos Creek wildfire in B.C.'s south Okanagan has been raising money to provide coffee, water, donuts and other snacks to crews from nearby communities who are helping protect their properties.

The BC Wildfire Service says 160 firefighters from small departments are on the ground in Keremeos and Olalla working primarily to protect homes and businesses from the out-of-control wildfire.

Jordan Olsoff fled her Olalla home with her three kids, their two dogs and six chickens, and as many of important possessions as the family could fit in the car.

They don’t know what they’ll find when they return.

“It’s hard. It’s been stressful because my husband’s been away at work, too, so a lot of this I’ve been doing on my own,” she said through tears. “It’s been…gosh, I don’t even know what day it is right now…It’s been a week and a bit since we went on alert and since we left and it’s just been really stressful.”

Thankfully she and her children are able to stay with a friend, but she says she feels bad about imposing.

Monday she was at a temporary fire evacuee centre set up in Keremeos to check if it was possible for her family to move into a hotel.

If that doesn’t happen, she may take her family to Kamloops to stay with relatives but she’s reluctant to do that because that leaves her too far away to get to work.

Even with everything she’s going through and trying to manage right now, she has still found the time and energy to give something back to the firefighters.

She’s been taking up a collection in the community and using the money to make sure the firefighters are hydrated and energized.

“Just to show our appreciation. Thank you for doing what you can to try and save all the homes out there. I know somebody did lose their home and it was very, very sad,” she said.

One home was lost last weekend but the BC Wildfire Service says it has managed to keep the fire away from other properties since. 

A total of 405 personnel are assigned to the fire and they’re being supported by 16 helicopters and some fixed-wing aircraft.

A camp has been set up at the airport in Oliver where the firefighters can sleep on the ground in tents between shifts spent fighting the wildfire which has scorched over 5900 hectares so far.

“It’s a very complex, complicated fire because it has burned into a bunch of different neighbourhood areas, different farm areas, along Highway 3A,” said Bryan Zanberg, a fire information officer.

“It’s also in these deep valleys and very hard to reach terrain. So, we’ve got all kinds of firefighting going on right now.”

He said crews in Olalla, where Olsoff’s home is at risk, have been building guards around the neighbourhood in order to separate the fire from residential areas.

The daytime highs have been in the mid-to-high 30s ever since this fire started -- nearly unbearable conditions for the firefighters toiling away with hand tools.

“The heat has been one of our biggest concerns these last few days,” said Zanberg. “Really having to make sure crews take lots of breaks, drink a lot, and people are looking after each other and making sure they are not overexerting themselves.”

That’s what makes small gestures like the ones being organized by Olsoff and her neighbours so touching.

“It is heart-warming but it also kind of rips you a little bit too because people are out of their homes, ” said Zanberg. “I think it’s pretty motivating.”

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