Please spare a moment for those struggling in Western Canada

[LoveFall]

Family in Kelowna BC had the Canadian high of 42 C today. They are fortunate to have air con but go out to work etc.

Lytton, BC is being evacuated due to raging wild fires that are spreading rapidly.

There are other fires spreading.

The heat is nearly unbearable. It is way above seasonal still in Vancouver.

If you have any sway with the weather gods, please say a word for us. This is frightening.

Hopefully it will rain, or go down to the 20's at least.

This is so sad and scary. I've been reading about it for the last week. I really hope it lets up soon, this happened in France a few years ago and a lot of elderly died, it was awful (and also in 2003 it was even worse).

Didn't the Conservatives just a few months ago reject an amendment to their party platform recognising climate change as real? Hope this focuses a few minds.

Best wishes from Melbourne, LoveFall.

Not that I thought summer's weren't warm in Vancouver, but my God, those temperatures are eye-popping. I would imagine that air-con would be the exception, not the rule, too.

I was in France on holiday in the secheresse of 2003, Xiaoxiong. The deaths among the elderly were frightening.

Im in the US but my thoughts are with the people of Lytton and the surrounding communities, especially many of the Indigenous communities who dont even have clean water, let alone ac. It must be hell for them, especially at a time when they are mourning the genocide of their children by the Canadian Government.
The atrocities committed against Indigenous people across N America do not cease.

The children did not die under the charge of the government, they died in the “care” of various church-run residential schools. At least as far as I’m aware. The governments may have turned a blind eye to it, but they did not run residential schools (I have relatives who attended residential schools in BC and the Yukon). I’d rather the churches were not let off the hook.

The small town of Lytton seems to be mostly burned to the ground now, those poor people. I’m just hoping we don’t get wildfires in that area - the smoke on top of the heat will cause a lot more deaths.

I was travelling across Canada some years ago, in the same area. At that time it was summer and 40 degrees, they said it was the hottest they'd known. I hate the heat and found it awful, many places didn't have air con.
Now, years later, they are having 49.6 degrees, it is shocking. All down to climate change and yet so many still won't accept that it's humans who are making this sort of thing worse. I can't even think how heat like that feels, I am saddened at the deaths and my heart goes out to those whose homes have burned down. I wish we'd all take more care of the planet.....

@Ritascornershop Church run, Government funded. The Church, The RCMP, The Government all had a hand in.

Thinking of you all. What can we do?

I was in Turkey in the summer of 2007 where it routinely gets up to around 45 degrees, but that summer it hit 50. Horrible. Very hard to keep cool without air con.

As a resident of Fort McMurray, I am keeping my fingers firmly crossed for you.

Am in the Middle East where it routinely approaches 50 degrees at this time of year but we are well equipped for the heat, with AC blasting everywhere and life moving indoors for a few months.

Thinking of those who aren’t set up for this kind of weather, it is truly stifling and very dangerous.

Thank you all. I am not sure what if anything you can do. Over 90% of Lytton was destroyed last night.

The Red Cross and other aid organizations are usually there. According to the media, the evacuation was so fast they are having trouble accounting for everyone, First Nations or not,

The heat has moderated at the coast but is still awful inland.

There are many wildfires. Wildfire is a renewal mechanism for our forests, but not so much when peoples homes and livelihoods are destroyed.

bc.ctvnews.ca/british-columbians-offer-shelter-supplies-following-lytton-fire-1.5493652

I cannot vouch for any fundraisers but if you feel you want to help, there are some links here.

Mumsnet if I breached the rules please delete and I am sorry.

Yes it’s sad really. They are still assessing Lytton and I think people still unaccounted for. We had 47c yesterday here ourselves it was hot. Today now at 30c in the evening feels like a cool wind. It’s been a crazy few days.

I lived through a heat dome event in Chicago in 1995 that claimed over 700 lives. The heat was something else and the air quality was very poor. It is a truly horrific thing to happen to any region. I sincerely hope the jet stream will start to shift.

The children became "wards of the state" when they were forcibly taken, so they did die under the care of the Government. It could be seen as a technicality, but when it comes down to reparations (if they ever come), support etc, its an important and crucial distinction.
As Onesailwait says, Government funded and organized, the Church were culpable, of course, nobody is letting them off the hook, they were the Government`s instrument.

I am sorry for what your family have endured @Ritascornershop, my MIL is a residential school survivor (along with many of my inlaws), my DH left Canada as soon as he was old enough and refuses to ever return, that kind of trauma tears through generations.

Yes I am really shocked by the children being found dead. I have realized that one mass murderer like Fred West created a storm when we realized he had killed people and buried people and now we see thousands of children being found buried in canada and no one is blinking an eyelid. I never saw canada like this and had no idea of it’s history. It’s shocking. Did anyone else know much of it ? How much does the rest of the world know of this ?

I know parts of BC well. This is shocking.

we were evacuated yesterday night. that order was rescinded a few hours later. now home and prepared to leave at a moments notice.
lots of crews working to keep the fire under control.
sadly the emergency alert system didn't work, the fire dept too busy with the situation to send out alerts and the district saying it's not within their region (the fire was in the city vs outskirts). believe it or not it was the teenagers and twitter/facebook posts that kept people on their toes.

Two people are confirmed to have died in the Lytton fire. Many people are displaced.

The Kamloops shelter was at capacity and when we experienced our own fire were told to stay with family and friends. Juniper Ridge has 9000 residents all evacuated plus the east side of valleyview.

The two confirmed deaths is very sad, my heart goes out to their son.

@fallfallfall

I hope you are ok. I have not been evacuated but family living in Kelowna were a few years ago. It is emotionally traumatic.

I lived in Kamloops as a teen and am a Kam High grad. It is sad to see the fires.

We are hoping to come up to Shuswap in a couple of weeks. I have experienced many smoky summer days there.

Please take care.

yes dh and i are fine, but are very resilient in general and were adequately prepared.

the shuswap will be a lovely get away. we've yet to fully discover that area. just two weeks ago a friend invited us to their cabin on little shuswap which was dreamy.