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TRENDING NOW: Why Monte Lake, Paxton Valley residents stayed behind to fight fire

When the White Rock Lake wildfire took a run through the Paxton Valley and Monte Creek on Aug. 5, many residents ignored evacuation orders to stay behind and try protecting their property. 

Since then, they have been called reckless and were accused of putting firefighters in danger. On social media, they were called fools and worse for staying behind. But some of the residents have a different story. 

TRENDING NOW: Why Monte Lake, Paxton Valley residents stayed behind to fight fire | iNFOnews.ca

Simon Hergott said in this video he went past road closures to collect this footage and these interviews. He does not explain why he put drones in the air in an active wildfire zone. 


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Marshall Jones


News is best when it's local, relevant, timely and interesting. That's our focus every day.

We are on the ground in Penticton, Vernon, Kelowna and Kamloops to bring you the stories that matter most.

Marshall may call West Kelowna home, but after 16 years in local news and 14 in the Okanagan, he knows better than to tell readers in other communities what is "news' to them. He relies on resident reporters to reflect their own community priorities and needs. As the newsroom leader, his job is making those reporters better, ensuring accuracy, fairness and meeting the highest standards of journalism.