'I got emotional': B.C. wildfire evacuee thanks crews who helped save Logan Lake

Vancouver -

When Crystal Mavor thinks about driving back into her town of Logan Lake, she becomes emotional.

Mavor and her family of six were evacuated from their home last week, as the Tremont Creek wildfire burned dangerously close to the community.

“We were on alert for about a week, 10 days, and then we were gone for six days from our home,” Mavor said. “Really, when it comes time, there’s no being prepared for something like this.”

The family spent their first two nights in the Shuswap, then travelled to the Lower Nicola, before being evacuated again. They eventually drove their motorhome to Kamloops until the evacuation order for Logan Lake was rescinded Thursday at noon.

While driving back into town, Mavor’s son shot video on his phone. Fire crews can be seen lining the street while Mavor and her family cheer, honk and yell “thank you” from their car.

“I try to be very strong for my children,” Mavor said. “As soon as I said, ‘These are the people that saved our town,’ is when I got very emotional.”

When asked if Mavor had a message for the crews who helped save Logan Lake, she said:

“From the bottom of my family’s heart and every single person in this community, thank you so much. You guys have no idea, oh, you do, you live here too.”

Calmer conditions are forecast for most of B.C.’s fire zones this weekend. Environment Canada meteorologist Geoff Coulson said scattered showers will be seen Saturday, becoming more widespread through Sunday. Plus, temperatures will begin to drop.

“Normal highs would be 26 to 27 degrees for many locations in the Interior and we’re looking at daytime highs Sunday and Monday more like 18 to 21 degrees,” Coulson said. “Temperatures will probably be bouncing back to more seasonal values next week.”

The conditions could allow for fire crews to get on top of some of the 250 plus fires currently burning across the province.

Taylor Colman, fire information officer for the BC Wildfire Service, said people are “cautiously optimistic.”

“When we have those conditions and lower fire activity, people, crews and equipment are able to get right up close to the fire’s edge and really take action directly on the fire,” Colman said. “The clearer skies also mean aircraft can fly and really see where tankers need to drop retardant.”

Colman said more help is coming to B.C. in the coming days. Friday night, a 20-person crew from Parks Canada is set to arrive, consisting of firefighters and an incident management team. Resources from Newfoundland are arriving Saturday and crews from Mexico have extended their stay in B.C. a few more weeks, until Sept. 9.