Kamloops

Amid cleanup, Lytton residents reflect on community strength one year after fire

Community strong after fire

Kristen Holliday - Jul 1, 2022 / 4:00 am | Story: 373755

Hollyhocks and other wildflowers are blooming between the twisted metal wreckage and rubble that still sits in Lytton’s town centre, devastated by fire a year ago Thursday.

On Thursday, heavy equipment and workers were busy on some properties within the fenced-off town site, continuing remediation efforts.

Village of Lytton Mayor Jan Polderman told Castanet Kamloops the goal is to have the main town site cleared by the fall.

“The challenge for Lytton is capacity — besides the town site, there isn’t much flat ground around, and so even if you have the money to build stuff, exactly where do you put it? So basically, we need to get the town site cleaned up and the aim there is to get it cleaned up by the end of September,” Polderman said.

The town centre housed a number of key buildings that were razed in the fire, including the RCMP detachment and an Interior Health building housing a clinic, lab, pharmacy and ambulance station.

The Village of Lytton office, library, a museum and a swimming pool, as well as small businesses, a grocery store, and several homes were also destroyed.

Amidst the charred and rusted remains of buildings, cars, fences and furniture, there are some elements of the town that survived — a raised playhouse sitting on one property remains intact, and a colourful mural on one wall of the town’s former grocery store is untouched.

Tricia Thorpe, who lost the house she owned with her husband in the fire, said they moved back into their rebuilt home — located just outside village limits — on March 7.

“Everything we have done has been through the help of the community, it's been through the help of friends. … I keep talking about it being built on love and friendship, because that's what it is,” Thorpe said, adding they did everything they could to make their rebuilt house and barn fire resistant.

"It feels a little bit odd that we're there, and we drive through the village and that hasn't changed. And that it gives you feelings of guilt. And honestly it's not right," Thorpe said.

Thorpe, who has called on government officials in the past for more aid for Lytton-area residents, said she hopes to see all levels of government working together to quickly restore essential services to the community.

One year later, debris removal is underway on many Lytton properties. The provincial government has dedicated a total of about $49 million in funding to aid in rebuilding efforts, while the federal government has pledged $77 million to help the village construct a fire-resistant and energy efficient community.

Thorpe said she wasn’t sure how she would feel leading up to the one-year anniversary, and has reflected on a number of things.

“It was horrific, all the things that happened. But a lot of good came out of it — like that sense of community that we were talking about, and people pulling together, and just finding out who really does care about you.”

On the day of the fire, Thorpe said she was at home and received a call asking if she could help people in the village evacuate.

“It turned out that we were too late to be able to help. I couldn't get back in the valley where my animals were, and so we tried to go in over the ridge. It's a back way — we probably shouldn't have done it. It was already on fire. And we could see black smoke, where our farm should be. That will stick forever.”

Thorpe said in the day after the blaze, her daughter’s partner — who works for the BC Wildfire Service — told them he believed everything on their property had been destroyed.

Thorpe said she got a call later reporting that it appeared some of their animals had made it.

“It was like this light, because everything was so black, and all of a sudden, it was like, ‘Something made it.’”

Thorpe said she believes the biggest challenge facing Lytton is the lack of essential services for the 2,000 to 2,500 people she estimates are still living along the corridor.

"Every time we need to do something, we have to plan ahead, and it takes up a large portion of your day, even to get a quart of milk. You’ve got to think about that, because you’re going all the way to Lillooet,” she said.

She said she believes the biggest hope lies in the resiliency of the community.

“I was just down at [Thursday’s Lytton Strong community event] and it was so good to see people. They just want to come home, and they're all happy to see you, there's that connection. So that's hope. Hope is us planting a garden this year,” Thorpe said.

On Thursday, the Lytton community gathered at the Stein Valley Nlakapamux School to commemorate the day by preparing art, letters and painted stones with images depicting people who helped them over the last 12 months.

The Village of Lytton said the items were collected and buried Thursday afternoon as part of a time capsule, which will be reopened in 30 years.

Denise O’Connor, a retired school principal and volunteer with the Lytton Resiliency Centre said in a statement this was a way to honour those who assisted the community.

“So many people, both inside and outside our community, helped us after the fire,” O’Connor said.

“This is one way we can honour them and the memory of that experience.”

Fraser-Nicola MLA Jackie Tegart told Castanet she had a “heavy heart,” reflecting on the devastation that happened last year, including the death of two people.

"It's going to be a long road forward," she said.

"But the people of Lytton are so committed to their community, and I think that has shown in so many places — on how they support one another, on how they continue to be advocating very strongly for the community, and how sometimes they force people to step up to the plate.”