Photo: City of Vernon

Messages of thanks were shared with emergency responders as two large banners were presented to them at Vernon's Kal Tire Place on Thursday.

Representatives from Vernon Fire Rescue Services, Vernon's Emergency Support Services Program, BC Emergency Health Services, the SPCA, Salvation Army, St. John Ambulance received the banners, which had been available for the public to sign at the arena during recent wildfire emergency operations.

They were filled with dozens of messages of thanks from community members and evacuees who came through Kal Tire Place while it was being used as an ESS reception centre as wildfires burned in the Okanagan and Shuswap.

The banners were donated by Wayside to offer an opportunity for community members to express their gratitude for the emergency response work that was done both on the front lines and at the reception centre during the fire crisis this summer.

For 15 days, Vernon's ESS reception centre was in operation, during which time more than 2,400 people were assisted who had been displaced from their homes due to wildfire in West Kelowna, Kelowna, Lake Country, and the Shuswap.

The banners have now been donated to Vernon Fire Rescue Services and Vernon's emergency program.