Lytton fire: Volunteer group sifts through wreckage to find heirlooms for victims
Damaged structures are seen in Lytton, B.C., on Friday, July 9, 2021, after a fire destroyed most of the village on June 30. (Darryl Dyck / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Vancouver -
A volunteer group of Canadian military veterans and civilians has begun sifting through the wreckage of homes destroyed by the wildfire that gutted most of Lytton.
Team Rubicon Canada was formed in the aftermath of the devastating Fort McMurray wildfire in 2016 and it has helped hundreds of families recover family heirlooms and other items that survived the flames.
Volunteers arrived in June to help staff Lytton's emergency operations centre and they began combing through residential rubble last week.
“Extreme weather events like the Lytton wildfire can be traumatic. Many residents were forced to evacuate with mere minutes to gather essentials, and many have yet to see what remains,” said Bryan Riddell, CEO of Team Rubicon Canada, in a news release issued last week.
"We’ve found in the past that this can offer a sense of closure for families and enable a step toward recovery.”
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