The North Vancouver Outdoor School (NVOS) has earned the chance to get FireSmart.
The District of Squamish announced Thursday, Aug. 13 that the school has been chosen as the winner of the Paradise Valley Fire Smart contest.
"A general desire to move away from heavily populated areas has resulted in significant increases in development in many forested areas of British Columbia," states the BC Forest Service website.
"Each year there are more than 2,000 forest fires in B.C., and although most occur far from populated areas many still start in wildland urban interface areas. These kinds of fires frequently threaten or burn homes, summer cottages and cabins, and other high value resources.
"To complicate matters, forest home site developments can often lack building restrictions, provisions for fire protection, or roads suitable to accommodate structural fire-fighting equipment. Homeowners living in wildland urban interface areas need to be FireSmart."
The FireSmart Paradise Valley contest was held to depict how a few steps in preparation of homes and properties can reduce the risk of damage in the event of a neighbourhood wildfire.
To help showcase preventative measures, the Squamish Emergency Program (SEP) is facilitating FireSmarting of the NVOS, and BC Forest Service (BCFS) Wildfire Management Branch will volunteer their services to prepare a portion of the property between now and Sunday, Sept. 6.
There are several things households can do to plan for wildfire protection, including understanding how wildfires start and spread, choosing a building site that offers natural protection, building a house using fire resistant materials, improving the fire resistance of your current home, using FireSmart landscaping principles to reduce a fire's ability to spread and making sure the household is prepared for a potential fire emergency.
All Squamish residents are invited to the event for a presentation on the property before and after its transformation, and to discuss emergency preparedness and fire prevention with, BCFS Wildfire Management Branch, and other community partners.
"The time to reduce the threat of wildfire is now, not when a fire is at your doorstep," states the district news release. "Be proactive, be practical, and be FireSmart."
On Sept. 6, between 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., the property will be on display to illustrate the techniques and impact of creating a FireSmart home.
SEP volunteers will host a barbecue -burgers and soft drinks will be available to all who attend.
"Squamish is working toward being a disaster resilient community," states the release. "All residents are encouraged to be prepared and to mitigate risk by being ready for unplanned emergencies."
Visit the SEP website at www.squamishrescue.com for more information and links to other emergency preparedness resources. For more information about FireSmart, visit the BC Forest Service website at www.bcwildfire.ca/prevention/property.
