Campbell Mountain scene of wildland fire training symposium

PENTICTON – The Penticton fire department is preparing for this year’s wildfire season with plans to host a wildfire training session in the city.

Penticton fire chief Larry Watkinson says in a media release a three-day wildland urban interface training symposium will take place in the Campbell Mountain area between April 6 and April 8.

The symposium is expected to bring 150 firefighters from 27 jurisdictions across the province to the city as they participate in training exercises involving supervised burning.

Watkinson advises fire service personnel, equipment and aircraft will be visible in Campbell Mountain area neighbourhoods. The exercises and training is being conducted by knowledgeable professionals who consider safety and property protection as top priorities.

Residents in the area may see up to 150 firefighters working a simulated fire event, in addition to smoke in the area at any given time. Firefighters and fire trucks will be highly visible and active in the neighbourhood as well, with Munson Mountain closed during the period for command and control staging locations.

Watkinson expressed his thanks to local residents in advance of the essential training exercise.

“The knowledge gained through this event benefits not only our local firefighters and the residents they protect, but also the crews and residents from the nearly 12 dozen B.C. communities who also respond to events involving wildland urban interface conditions,” Watkinson says in the release.

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