Prime Minister Trudeau in West Kelowna announces funding for wildfire preparedness

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said more money is coming for volunteer firefighters and wildfire preparedness at a press conference in West Kelowna today. Following his meetings with first responders, local elected officials, ministers, and the local charity Mamas for Mamas, Trudeau took questions from reporters about this wildfire season. “We know that we need to be more prepared, more coordinated and focused on everything we're doing to keep families, individuals, communities, and our country safe. This morning, I sat down with a number of families who lost their homes in the fires here last year, who are still deeply impacted by it,” Trudeau said. Trudeau said the forecasts show a difficult fire season ahead. READ MORE: Prime Minister in Central Okanagan to meet with first responders https://infotel.ca/newsitem/prime-minister-in-central-okanagan-to-meet-with-first-responders/it104679 “People are worried about what the summer might bring. People are worried about what the future might hold for themselves, for next generations. There's a lot of uncertainty in the world, and climate change is a big part of it,” he said. “I also sat down with the mayors and the fire chiefs to talk about this upcoming season. We know from the forecasts that in Western and Northern Canada, because of the dry winter, because of some of the challenges that are going to be faced, it is likely to be a very bad forest fire season,” he said.  The Prime Minister emphasized the government’s effort to increase the amount of firefighters on the ground. “That's why the federal government has just doubled the volunteer firefighter tax credit. We're moving forward with $800,000 to further accelerate and complete the training up of 1,000 wildland firefighters across the country, and we're putting $175 million into Indigenous communities where both emergency response and preparedness as well is going to be so important. I heard directly from the leaders behind me about the importance of continuing to invest in FireSmart programs where homeowners and communities can do more to protect their homes, their communities from wildfires, and we're going to be continuing to do that,” he said. Trudeau was asked why it has taken so long to rebuild Lytton after the fires in 2021 destroyed a large portion of the village. “Rebuilding a town is no small task and the support for individuals in getting through this difficult time is a very real priority for this government. We'll continue to work with them as we move forward, but it's yet another example of how much we need to do to prepare and to support people facing incredibly difficult situations,” he said. To contact a reporter for this story, email Jesse Tomas mailto:jtomas@infonews.ca  or call 250-488-3065 or email the editor mailto:news@infonews.ca . You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom mailto:tips@infonews.ca  and be entered to win a monthly prize draw. We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. SUBSCRIBE to our awesome newsletter here https://infotel.ca/newsletter .