Whitehorse city council got a seasonal wildfire briefing at May 6’s standing committee meeting.
The city’s fire chief, Travis Whiting, and Keith Fickling of Wildland Fire Management told council that the two fire departments are training together to best prepare for the summer. Councillors had questions for the two fire agencies, many regarding the Whitehorse fuel break.
Fickling told council that Wildland Fire had “all staff on strength” in the Southern Lakes. Returning staff have completed training and thus the agency is “fire ready,” said Fickling.
Fickling shared updates regarding Wildland Fire’s operations regarding controlled burns and fuel breaks in the Whitehorse area.
So far the weather has not been cooperative enough for the agency to start hazard reduction burning, said Fickling.
In April Yukon Protective Services shared the locations for planned hazard reduction burns in and around the city: Range Road south of Whistle Bend, trails south of Porter Creek, Long Lake Road northwest and across the river from Whistle Bend, the Alaska Highway weigh scales, Hidden Lakes south of Riverdale, Robert Service Boulevard right-of-way, Camp Boyle near Mary Lake, and north of Takhini neighbourhood across from the Kopper King.
Fickling also provided some updates on the fuel break. Work on the fuel break in the area of Copper Haul and Mary Lake is expected to wrap up in the next two years, said Fickling, and work at Mount Sima portion of the fuel break is expected to continue for the next three years.
The South Klondike Fuel Break now has YESAB approval, so Fickling said next steps involve opening up old roads and existing trails in the area for ease of access and hauling.
This summer, the agency will also be planting 230,000 aspen trees in areas of the fuel break that have already been treated, he said.
Fickling also was hesitant to provide any information on what the summer may bring. He said that there were no drought conditions last fall and winter precipitation was normal, but did point out that the precipitation in March and April was lower than usual. May tends to be a dry month as well, he said.
“We'll see what summer brings,” he said.
Coun. Dan Boyd asked if the windy conditions the city has been facing lately are normal.
Fickling said the wind has not changed drastically according to historical data.
“It seems to be that it has always been a relatively windy place, but personally, I think it's getting windier. That's not based on any science,” said Fickling.
“The cornerstone of what we do relies on weather and so, you know, our day is taken up with daily, multiple daily weather briefings. We do watch it. And wind is the most variable effect of weather on the fire, right? And so we watch that daily. We watch it throughout the day, and adjust accordingly,” said Fickling.
Fire chief Whiting credited Fickling and Wildland Fire for working with the city during the fire season to help identifies areas of risk.
“We really rely on that local knowledge, as opposed to that broader-scale news briefs that you see nationally or even across western Canada, we really have a localized weather and topography and fuel loads up here,” said Whiting.
“So our work with Keith really helps us really understand our risk and be prepared as we go through the season.”
Contact Talar Stockton at talar.stockton@yukon-news.com
