Sooke FireSmart Program

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British Columbia has experienced unprecedented wildfire seasons in recent years. The changing climate, higher temperatures and drought conditions are all leading causes of aggressive fire behaviour and longer wildfire seasons. Living in a fire-prone ecosystem means we must implement wildfire mitigation strategies to reduce our wildfire risk and protect our community.

Fires on the coast can be vigorous especially in steep/difficult terrain and/or in drought-stricken areas. Lightning storms and water shortages are becoming more common during the summer months and impact both fire behaviour and response operations on the coast.

Preparing for the threat of wildfire is a shared responsibility from homeowners, to businesses to government. We all have the responsibility to reduce our risk and increase our wildfire resiliency.

What is the Risk? The Wildfire Risk Framework used in BC supports initiatives related to wildfire risk reduction. The largest threat to Sooke is wildfire as our community is currently classified in the highest risk category.

This framework measures risk and considers the likelihood of a wildfire event, community consequences, and impacts to high-value resources and assets. By identifying these risk levels, we can prioritize mitigation efforts and increase community resiliency to wildfire.

What is the Structure Ignition Problem? Many homeowners falsely assume there is no wildfire threat to their home and property if not directly on the forest’s edge or in contact with flames. Embers and burning debris can easily travel up to two kilometers ahead of a wildfire and ignite materials on or near your home. This can cause severe damage or total home loss.

Most homes destroyed during a wildfire event are from embers, and surface fires that have not yet reached the crown of the trees. Once homes or adjacent materials begin burning, these residential fuels burn at a higher intensity. The fire will then continue to spread rapidly throughout the community igniting multiple structures simultaneously through direct flame, radiant heat, and casting of shorter ranged embers. No longer influenced by the original wildfire, this urban fire will continue to burn residential fuels and flammable materials.

What is FireSmart? Being FireSmart is about living and co-existing with wildfires because it’s not a matter of if, but when. It’s a tool designed to reduce the likelihood of large uncontrollable, high intensity wildfires within the Wildland Urban Interface.

Recent science and studies have shown that overtime, FireSmart principles can significantly reduce the risk related to losses in the most extreme wildfire conditions. Laboratory testing, physical modeling and recent wildfire events have increased our understanding of structural ignitions and fire behaviour such as radiant heat transfer and the flammability of different building materials.


British Columbia has experienced unprecedented wildfire seasons in recent years. The changing climate, higher temperatures and drought conditions are all leading causes of aggressive fire behaviour and longer wildfire seasons. Living in a fire-prone ecosystem means we must implement wildfire mitigation strategies to reduce our wildfire risk and protect our community.

Fires on the coast can be vigorous especially in steep/difficult terrain and/or in drought-stricken areas. Lightning storms and water shortages are becoming more common during the summer months and impact both fire behaviour and response operations on the coast.

Preparing for the threat of wildfire is a shared responsibility from homeowners, to businesses to government. We all have the responsibility to reduce our risk and increase our wildfire resiliency.

What is the Risk? The Wildfire Risk Framework used in BC supports initiatives related to wildfire risk reduction. The largest threat to Sooke is wildfire as our community is currently classified in the highest risk category.

This framework measures risk and considers the likelihood of a wildfire event, community consequences, and impacts to high-value resources and assets. By identifying these risk levels, we can prioritize mitigation efforts and increase community resiliency to wildfire.

What is the Structure Ignition Problem? Many homeowners falsely assume there is no wildfire threat to their home and property if not directly on the forest’s edge or in contact with flames. Embers and burning debris can easily travel up to two kilometers ahead of a wildfire and ignite materials on or near your home. This can cause severe damage or total home loss.

Most homes destroyed during a wildfire event are from embers, and surface fires that have not yet reached the crown of the trees. Once homes or adjacent materials begin burning, these residential fuels burn at a higher intensity. The fire will then continue to spread rapidly throughout the community igniting multiple structures simultaneously through direct flame, radiant heat, and casting of shorter ranged embers. No longer influenced by the original wildfire, this urban fire will continue to burn residential fuels and flammable materials.

What is FireSmart? Being FireSmart is about living and co-existing with wildfires because it’s not a matter of if, but when. It’s a tool designed to reduce the likelihood of large uncontrollable, high intensity wildfires within the Wildland Urban Interface.

Recent science and studies have shown that overtime, FireSmart principles can significantly reduce the risk related to losses in the most extreme wildfire conditions. Laboratory testing, physical modeling and recent wildfire events have increased our understanding of structural ignitions and fire behaviour such as radiant heat transfer and the flammability of different building materials.


  • Community Pop-ups: November 19th (Fuca Cycles) & November 30th (The Stick in the Mud Coffee House)

    Share Community Pop-ups: November 19th (Fuca Cycles) & November 30th (The Stick in the Mud Coffee House) on Facebook Share Community Pop-ups: November 19th (Fuca Cycles) & November 30th (The Stick in the Mud Coffee House) on Twitter Share Community Pop-ups: November 19th (Fuca Cycles) & November 30th (The Stick in the Mud Coffee House) on Linkedin Email Community Pop-ups: November 19th (Fuca Cycles) & November 30th (The Stick in the Mud Coffee House) link
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    A HUGE thank you to everyone who completed the recent FireSmart Survey! We're keen to keep the conversation going. Meet Ashlene at an upcoming community pop-up to learn more about how you can become more FireSmart:

    • Understand how wildfires grow and spread,
    • Learn about what to do during a wildfire emergency,
    • Learn how to use FireSmart principles to help protect your home and property.

    Big thank you also to our local businesses for their support and hosting us outside their storefront:

    • Friday, November 19th, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., at Fuca Cycles (5871 Sooke Road)
    • Tuesday, November 30th, 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., at Stick In The Mud Coffee House (6715 Eustace Road)

    Can't make either of these pop-ups? Submit related questions, through the "Ask a Question" feature on this platform!

  • FireSmart Home Ignition Zones

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    It may not seem like the perfect time to get FireSmart with colder weather and rain in the forecast, but it’s the perfect time! As you clear up wood debris and yard waste this winter, you are building protection around your home and property from wildfire.

    Learn about the FireSmart Home Ignition Zones here: FS_Home-Ignition-Zone-Poster-11x17in.pdf (firesmartbc.ca) which can make a significant difference to the survivability of structures by decreasing the intensity of a wildfire and slowing its spread. Begin with the home and then work outwards!

  • Wildfire Preparedness Guide

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    Take time this winter to learn how to prepare your household, protect your property, and understand what to do if a wildfire comes close to our community.

    Review the Wildfire Preparedness Guide: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/.../wildfire_preparedness_guide.pdf

  • FireSmart Principles

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    Over time, FireSmart principles have shown to be effective at reducing the risk related to losses in the most extreme wildfire conditions.

    Learn more at www.sooke.ca/firesmart.

  • FireSmart BC Homeowner's Manual

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    Wildfire prevention is a shared responsibility between the public, business, and the government but the first line of defense is often the homeowner. Homeowners play an important role in wildfire prevention; they can directly reduce the wildfire risk and damage to their property by using FireSmart principles.

    Download the FireSmart BC Homeowner’s Manual and start today: https://homeowners-manual.firesmartbc.ca/

  • District Seeking Resident Input on FireSmart Program Development

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    The District of Sooke is developing a FireSmart program thanks to funding from the Union of British Columbia Municipalities and their (UBCM) FireSmart Economic Recovery Fund grant.

    Ashlene Aktarian joins the District from Emergency Management BC (EMBC), where she was working in the Emergency Support Services (ESS) Division as the Project Coordinator for the new Evacuee Registration and Assistance (ERA) tool and will be serving as the District's FiureSmart Coordinator. “FireSmart is about increasing community resiliency to wildfire. I am excited to bring my emergency program experience to the District in this role where we are building a FireSmart program for the community. To do so, I need to hear from the residents to better understand their interests and needs,” Aktarian talks about this first step in program development.

    Residents can provide feedback through a short online form at letstalk.sooke.ca/firesmart until November 7, 2021.

    Learn more:

    The UBCM FireSmart Economic Recovery Grant provides communities up to $75,000 to support immediate job creation in order to build local wildfire resiliency and assist communities in recovering from the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • Meet Ashlene, District of Sooke FireSmart Coordinator

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    Ashlene joins the District from Emergency Management BC (EMBC), where she was working in the Emergency Support Services (ESS) Division as the Project Coordinator for the new Evacuee Registration and Assistance (ERA) tool, which is an online tool for registering displaced people during an emergency/significant event. She also brings previous experience with the BC Wildfire Service as a Fire Information Officer for various regions within the province to her new role with the District.

    We are excited to have Ashlene joining our team and are grateful for the funding of this position through the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) FireSmart Economic Recovery Fund grant.

    Ashlene will be developing resources and materials during her term with the District, which concludes June 2022, to support residents and the community to become more FireSmart.

    Please join us in welcoming Ashlene to the District of Sooke!

Page last updated: 03 Jul 2024, 04:24 PM