Fort Smith residents welcome latest report on N.W.T.'s handling of 2023 wildfires

Some people in Fort Smith, N.W.T., are welcoming recommendations included in the latest report on the N.W.T. government's handling of the 2023 wildfires and community evacuations.

The consultant's report, released last week, found the territory's response was riddled with issues, including that frontline staff didn't know an emergency plan existed. 

Helena Katz lives in Fort Smith, which was one of the communities most affected by the wildfires. Katz was among those who headed to Hay River when her community was evacuated in 2023, and was then forced to flee Hay River when a fire also threatened that community.  

Katz and her husband were driving south of Hay River with their animals in a trailer when flames engulfed the highway and their vehicle caught fire. They managed to escape and were rescued, but they lost their beloved alpacas and herding dogs in the incident.

The report released last week follows one that was released in 2024 by Calgary-based consulting firm MNP. That earlier report focused on the department of Environment and Climate Change's (ECC) preparedness and response to the 2023 wildfire season. 

She says the 2024 report confirmed things she had been hearing informally. 

"When you get answers, it helps with some of the healing that needs to happen. For me, like a lot of us suffered… experienced trauma," she said. 

"In my case, some of the trauma was things like flashbacks, not being able to go out in public, not sleeping. Every time I close my eyes, all I would see was us … like me sitting in the burning truck. And so it helps to understand what happened."

The report also includes recommendations, all of which Katz agrees with, but adds she still has questions the report doesn't answer. 

Among the recommendations is one urging the territory to create an agency dedicated to emergency management. Katz believes that's something that could lessen the pressure placed on local governments. 

"You might have some elected officials that are trying to decide on whether to take a recommendation to evacuate," she said. 

"And some may just say, 'sure, that's fine we accept the recommendation of the experts,' but other people that might not have as much experience might start questioning it. And then that leads to delays."

Dana Fergusson, mayor of Fort Smith, agrees that a single agency dedicated to emergency management would have made a difference during the evacuation, especially around who's essential and who isn't.

"I think clearly identifying roles and responsibilities in an emergency would definitely streamline the process," she said.

Fergusson was a town councillor during the 2023 evacuation. During that time she kept residents informed on what was happening on the ground by posting regular videos to social media. She says she did this because of misinformation that was circulating, including false stories of buildings burning down.   

"There was a huge gap in how to get information out," Fergusson recalled. 

She said letting people know that their homes were OK while they were away gave them "hope." 

Fergusson and Katz both agreed that the Town of Fort Smith had a good emergency plan in 2023. Its emergency preparedness plan for 2025 was nearly put to the test already this season, as Fort Smith faced an evacuation alert earlier this month due to a suspected human caused fire near the community. 

Fergusson said the fact the threat this month was addressed so quickly has shown people how prepared the community is. But she said people are still aware of how high the risk is.

"Everyone's talking about how dry it is in our area. We still have a whole lot of potential fuel sources to the east of our community into Alberta," she said.  

"So I wouldn't say we're feeling safe and secure. We're feeling as safe and secure as we can be with being prepared as we are."