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TRU faculty member working to mobilize Schubert Drive neighbourhood for better fire preparedness

FireSmart Schubert Drive

A Thompson Rivers University faculty member living on the North Shore is working to make his neighbourhood better prepared for fires.

Bala Nikku, an assistant professor with TRU’s faculty of education and social work, hosted an event on Sunday, Sept. 5 at Moose Park to introduce his neighbours living along Schubert Drive to FireSmart practices.

Janet Ford, a FireSmart coordinator with the BC Wildfire Service, was on hand with materials to help share FireSmart principles.

Nikku said he has been motivated to make his community more prepared after experiencing this summer’s particularly aggressive wildfires.

“Resiliency is not only bouncing back, but resilience is also bouncing forward. So if you really want to be a resilient community, that means you come together. You're thinking of the next 10 years,” Nikku said.

As a university faculty member teaching social work, Nikku said he understands problems like climate change require communities to work together to make a difference.

“That actually lead that spark in me, I need to do something. I live here now, and I have this capacity to understand these structures, these linkages, and I can access resources,” Nikku said.

“As a social worker, my job is to bring these resources, [and] connect with the community.”

Nikku said he has walked around the Schubert Drive neighbourhood, and has noticed many homes aren’t maintained, and could be vulnerable to a fire.

For those who think their homes are safe in a more urban environment and don’t require the implementation of FireSmart practices, Nikku said “a fire will not wait for your planning.”

“When the disaster strikes and all, that is the time that we try to do something, and it's already done. The time is already over. So to get that preparedness saves a lot of dollars, saves a lot of lives, a lot of tension, a lot of anxiety, a lot of trauma,” Nikku said.

“A FireSmart program is best, I think, to prepare as a community to face this.”

The FireSmart program helps homeowners prepare houses and yards to make their properties more resilient to a fire. Steps include ensuring roofs, gutters and yards are cleaned and assessing the health and the type of trees or plants are growing near buildings.

Nikku points to Logan Lake — the first designated FireSmart community in Canada — and how the district’s homes and structures were saved from the Tremont Creek wildfire.

“We can learn a lot of things from them,” he said.

Nikku said he is planning on continuing his work to make the North Shore neighbourhood FireSmart.

He said he will be setting up a Facebook page to help share community resources, and he will continue to reach out to “neighbourhood champions” to mobilize residents and the BC Wildfire Service and the city for expert advice and resources.

“We need neighbours and these friends to reflect and talk to experts and mobilize resources. As a community we can make this happen. Maybe they're not aware that there are benefits available, maybe they're not aware that there is expertise available. So as community, we can have these discussions,” Nikku said.



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