Flames from the Donnie Creek wildfire burn along a ridge top north of Fort St. John, B.C. on Sunday, July 2, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Noah Berger
A firefighter has been killed while fighting the massive Donnie Creek wildfire in northeastern British Columbia, marking the second such fatality in the province this month during this year’s record fire season.
The BC Wildfire Service has confirmed that a contract firefighter crew member was killed yesterday in the Prince George Fire Centre area, which includes the almost 6,000-square-kilometre Donnie Creek blaze.
The offices of both B.C. Premier David Eby and Forests Minister Bruce Ralston say the firefighter, who has not been identified publicly, died while fighting the Donnie Creek wildfire.
On July 13, 19-year-old Devyn Gale died while she was fighting a wildfire near Revelstoke, B.C., after she was struck by a falling tree.
Eby says in his statement that the most recent fatality coming so soon after Gale’s death “has shaken people throughout” the province and devastated the firefighting community.
Statistics from the provincial wildfire service show there are currently 363 active wildfires in British Columbia, with 11 new fires in the last 24 hours and 191 blazes classified as out of control.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 29, 2023.
