Forest fires: Be prepared
With the wildfire situation in B.C. imprinted in my mind, I would like to suggest to the residents and business owners in Whitehorse to bring to the attention of those in government the need to implement major forest fire prevention measures to reduce fire risk.
The forest south of town, from the Carcross Cutoff through Wolf Creek to the South Access Road and on to Copper Ridge, is a fire disaster waiting to happen.
The forest is extremely thick and fuel-rich. If the circumstances are right, and a fire gets started, Whitehorse is going to have a catastrophe on its hands.
We need to pay attention to what happened in Fort McMurray and other communities (Williams Lake, Cache Creek, Clinton etc.) that did not take the precautions they needed to.
We need to learn from the mistakes of others before a fire happens and not be part of the club that points fingers and lays fault after the fact.
We need to be smart.
Butch Johnson Carcross