August 8, 2026 Okanagan on Fire

“I’ve lost everything.” Andre’s words erupted over the phone. His anguish pulsed through the phone. 

My heart sank.

My friend, who had very little to start with, lost his home to the fast-moving fire that destroyed the village of Faulder and blazed toward the municipality of Summerland. 

When I left my home in West Kelowna, I saw the billowing tower of smoke coming from behind the mountains along Okanagan Lake. At first I hoped this was smoke from some distant wildfires. But the closer I got, the clearer it became.

This was a new fire. And it was huge.

Earlier in the day, the sky was clearing up, and it seemed as though we may be escaping the hold of the fire season. The blazes in the North Okanagan were dying out after destroying over 200 homes. Maybe we would escape the devastating effects of the tinder-dry conditions plaguing our beautiful valley.

I was so wrong.

The first thing I thought of when I saw the billowing smoke was my friend, Andre. I knew he lived in the woods where that smoke was coming from. I slowed down and pulled over to view what appeared to be a nuclear bomb erupting in the distance. I stopped and scanned the local news. Sure enough, the report was there: Wildfire rages just west of Summerland. My stomach sank even further. 

Not another fire.

I found myself shaking with dread for the people of Summerland. I reached for my phone and called my friend; there was no answer to my call. I hoped beyond hope that his place would be okay — that he would be okay. 

Only one of those hopes would come true.

I would find that out when I took my daughter and her friend on the lake for a boat ride. We crossed the water and sat close to shore. We tied to a buoy, avoiding the wind and the heartbreaking sight of the billowing smoke

My phone rang. 

It was Andre. That was when he issued those fateful words. “I’ve lost everything. I managed to get back into my trailer and rescue my cat. But everything else is gone.” He sobbed briefly. “The heat was so intense I thought I was on fire. I wanted to rescue more from my place, but it was too close. The fire was right on top of me. I’m lucky to escape with my life. All I have are the clothes on my back.”

“You are welcome to come stay at my place.” It was all I could do for him. There was nothing left to say. 

What do you say to someone who has lost everything to wildfire?

I knew insurance wasn’t an option. He lives off the grid on someone’s property. He didn’t have much to begin with. But he was happy. He had what he needed; he had a quiet life in the forest, hanging out with his chickens and his cat. Why would he need house insurance? Who would insure a thirty-year-old fifth wheel anyway? 

Now it was gone.

Andre called back an hour later.

His voice shook through the phone. He didn’t know where to go or what to do. He was at the evacuation centre in the middle of Summerland, but that was being evacuated in the face of the onrushing flames. I once again offered my home for him to come to. 

“I feel like going somewhere in my truck and curling up into a ball and going to sleep,” the devastation in his voice oozed into the phone. 

When we touched base an hour later, he’d gone to Penticton to see about getting help from Emergence Social Services. I knew the long wait of futility he had ahead of him. There were thousands of people like my friend. Thousands of people looking for salvation.

When the headlines read thousands flee wildfire, this headline would actually ring true. 12,000 residents of Summerland were forced to evacuate as night settled in. In four short hours, the fire grew from 50 hectares to 5000 hectares. By the next day it had doubled once more. 

The devastation and destruction of my friend’s life brought home a sobering reality. I may have suffered some injury and loss rescuing those wayward Sea-Doo riders a week ago. It is nothing compared to what my friend and so many others like him are suffering because of the catastrophic fire season engulfing our province.

How did this fire start? The question hovers over all of us. There was no lightning, no reason other than human-caused. More questions abound: is there someone setting the fires? We know the one that devastated the North Okanagan was caused by an ATV accident. Was this from another careless ATVer? A bottle sitting on the forest floor that became so hot it erupted in flame. Or is it something far more sinister? Is there some crazy person that gets a kick out of the chaos? Is there a person setting these blazes on purpose so they can watch the devastation, the misery?

It is too horrible to comprehend.

As is the shadow of man-made climate change that is wreaking havoc on the world. It is not only BC, but Europe as well. France, Spain, Greece; all on fire this year. When and where will it end?

The evidence of climate change surrounds us. Yet there are still far too many people who deny the evidence. Who deny the reality.

Climate change is real, and it is devastating our part of the world.

The drought we are in is far too real. We have not had any real amount of rain this year. Not just this month, but this year. And before that, we had a very low amount of snowfall in our mountain ranges. At the same time, other parts of Canada suffered with record snow, flooding, and torrential rain. 

Our climate is changing. And there is very little being done to stop it. It is not convenient; it is bad for the economy. Carbon taxes hurt the economy, but they do curb people from using fossil fuels. The evidence is mounting.

So is the denial.

There is no rain in the forecast. Just more heat, more smoke. More fire. 

Join me if you can and pray, wish, and hope: let it rain, let it rain.