News & Updates

General OKIB Emergency Operations Center Update

Posted On August 29, 2023

General OKIB Emergency Operations Center Update

August 29th, 2023 @ 1300hrs

Good Afternoon Members

The Okanagan Indian Band Emergency Operations Center continues to monitor the ongoing situation with wildfires in the vicinity. Emergency Operations Monitoring will be slowly tapering off with today’s update being the final scheduled update from the OKIB Emergency Operations Center. Additional updates may be released if needed.

Conditions yesterday did not allow for planned ignitions to take place on the Northwest corner of the McDougall Creek fire. BC Wildfire Service is anticipating another day of active fire behavior today before the upcoming wetter cooling period settles in overnight tonight and into Thursday. Currently the focus remains on the southwest corner of the fire.

Environment Canada is forecasting 10-15mm of precipitation and the potential for thunderstorms over the next 24 hours. Wednesday and Thursday will continue the cooling trend before warming again on Friday and Saturday. Winds for the next few days are expected to be a consistent southwesterly 20km with gusts up to 40km.

The OKIB Emergency Operations Center will be winding down our operations. We will continue to monitor the fire situation and update with non-scheduled bulletins if the situation drastically changes.

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Have you assembled your evacuation kit and your grab-and-go bag? Take a photo and send it to [email protected] and we will post it as inspiration for other members. Check out this link for information on items to include: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-management/preparedbc/build-an- emergency-kit-and-grab-and-go-bag

Mental Health and Wellness support is available for OKIB members who would like to talk to a counsellor. Call the OKIB Mental Wellness intake and referral line at 250-241-4741. More information is available on our website at https://okib.ca/news/call-if-you-need-to-talk.

Additional mental health information is available here: https://okib.ca/departments/emergency-management/okib-emergency-operations-centre

Please FireSmart your home. Clean up leaves and needles, trim bushes back from your house, move firewood away from structures. Ensure there are no flammable objects around your home. More information to FireSmart your home is located at: https://firesmartbc.ca/

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