Photo: Cindy White

A home being rebuilt in Traders Cove. The neighbourhood was devastated by the McDougall Creek wildfire of 2023.

There are pockets of the Westside that have seen a constant flow of heavy equipment rumbling by day-in and day-out, but not as part of a push for new homes and the city's ever-growing population.

Many trades workers are still tasked with repairing communities scarred by the McDougall Creek wildfire that destroyed nearly 200 homes, damaged dozens more and razed 13,500 hectares of ground in the Central Okanagan.

It's considered one of the most destructive B.C. wildfires in recent memory, and the Insurance Bureau of Canada estimated the fire caused $480 million in insured damage.

Some residents in the Westside neighbourhoods hardest hit by the August 2023 wildfire, say progress has come in fits and starts, hampered by everything from insurance issues to shifting building codes.

One glimpse into how the communities hardest hit by fire are faring can be found in the rebuild statistics of their municipal government and the approach being taken by city officials.

Traders Cove, Wilson’s Landing — Regional District of the Central Okanagan.

“Our team has been diligently prioritizing permit applications for both demolition and new construction,” Danielle Noble-Brandt, Director, development and engineering services, Regional District of Central Okanagan, said in a statement.

“It's encouraging to see the community's resilience, and we're committed to supporting the rebuilding efforts every step of the way.”

The regional district has had 89 demolition applications, and have approved 87. Of those, 73 are complete.

So far, there have been 50 building permit applications submitted to the regional district. Of those, 46 have been issued and 13 have been completed.

West Kelowna Estates — City of West Kelowna

“Our hearts go out to everyone who continues to rebuild and recover from the wildfire,” City of West Kelowna representatives said in an emailed statement.

“City staff continue to prioritize and expedite all wildfire permits, as soon as residents are ready and able to proceed with the rebuilding process.”

The city has received 102 permit applications to date and of those just over half, or 53, are completed. There are three in process and the other 12 are in review stages, such as plan checking, for example.

Of the 102 permits, 51 have been for demolition, 1 for blasting, and 44 for rebuilding homes. Three are non-residential, two are for retaining walls and one is for a swimming pool.”

Westbank First Nation

“The Westbank First Nation community has shown incredible strength and resilience in the aftermath of the McDougall Creek wildfire," Westbank First Nation Chief Robert Louie said in a statement.

"Nearly all of the destroyed homes are either rebuilt or actively under construction, with some families already returned and settled. This progress reflects not only the urgency we felt to support affected residents, but also the strength of self-government.”

Louie said WFN processes allowed them to move quickly—from demolition to permitting—while keeping community needs at the forefront. They're also seeing change in what's needed as the situation progresses.

"We’ve also seen growing interest in secondary suites, which will help address housing needs into the future," Louie said.

"While the emotional impacts of the wildfire are still felt, we’re proud of the progress made and grateful for the collaboration that continues to support our recovery.”

Following the McDougall Creek wildfire, 12 single-family homes and one fourplex were destroyed on Westbank First Nation lands.

There were 10 building permits issued for the rebuilding of single-family homes, one additional building permit application is currently under review and one lot remains undeveloped at this time, with no permit application submitted.

The building permit for the fourplex has been issued, and construction is progressing.

Several homes have reached the stage where occupancy permits have already been issued.

WFN has also received multiple rezoning applications for the affected lots to permit secondary suites, which would increase housing availability in the area.

Construction is well underway across most properties, reflecting Westbank First Nation’s commitment to supporting residents through timely rebuilding efforts.

Looking back at McDougall

The fire was first discovered at about 6 p.m. on Aug. 15, 2023, burning 10 kilometres north of the City of West Kelowna. A small amount of smoke could be seen from Kelowna on the evening of Aug. 15, and the BC Wildfire Service told Castanet at the time that eight firefighters and two helicopters were responding to the small fire.

Due to smoky conditions across the region, the helicopters were unable to help the next morning.

By the night of Aug. 16, the fire was estimated at 64 hectares in size and nearly 5,000 homes had been placed on evacuation alert.

Things really picked up on Aug. 17, when a “perfect storm” of strong, erratic winds hit the bone-dry region, causing the fire to grow rapidly.

The fire exhibited Rank 6 behaviour, the most aggressive fire behaviour on the BC Wildfire Service's scale.

Residents were forced to leave their homes as whole neighbourhoods were quickly evacuated, with the fire bearing down on West Kelowna. Emergency officials first confirmed that structures had been lost in the early morning hours of Aug. 18, as fire crews fought the raging blaze through the night.

The blaze eventually crossed to Kelowna, then Lake Country, and in its totality became the Grouse Complex.

It took weeks before the threat was dampened.

—with files from Nicholas Johansen

Photo: Ariel Cawley

Homes burning in the Westside Road area on the night of Aug. 17, 2023.