![Residents around Strathcona Park to get civic audience to press fire concerns](https://media-cdn.socastsrm.com/wordpress/wp-content/blogs.dir/1605/files/2023/07/strathcona-terrace-walking-path-1.jpg)
A look at the walking path between between Strathcona Terrace and St. Paul Street West, as seen from between Strathcona Terrace. (Photo via Google Maps)
A group of concerned residents living around Strathcona Park in the west end of downtown Kamloops have a meeting scheduled with leading city officials next week to relay their concerns about fire danger in the Park.
Area resident Jane Epp says they’re due to meet with the Chief of Kamloops Fire Rescue, as well as head of Civic Operations, to discuss concerns about the potential fire fuels in Strathcona.
“There is a huge amount of goji bushes that have come up along the path. If there was a spark, those goji berries would just go up in flames very, very quickly,” argued Epp in an interview with Radio NL. “Drop a cigarette ash into the bushes, or if a homeless person did light a fire… it’s dangerous for the homeless people too.”
Epp points to a fire in Strathcona Park in April of last year which saw flames reach close to a number of homes before KFR crews were able to get in and knock it down.
“The prevailing winds go down the pathway towards the city center. If there was a fire, it would go whipping,” said Epp.
KFR Chief Ken Uzeloc has been on-record saying while there is a fire risk in Strathcona, he notes the lack of pine trees, as well as park access through the pathway, makes it a lower fire danger area than other parts of Kamloops.
The level of fire danger in Kamloops and the surrounding area is expected to rise later on in the week, as a high pressure system is due to linger over the region starting on Wednesday, bring temperatures up into the mid-to-high 30’s by the weekend.