From the Cariboo to Kamloops, B.C .is in a major crisis due to weeks of hot dry weather resulting in wildfires caused by lightning as well as humans.
Prince George has been spared, so far, and has opened its arms to welcome any of the approximately 14,000 people evacuated from their homes.
Mayor Lyn Hall got on the horn right away and spread the word that Prince George was here and ready to help.
Surprised?
Not for one moment.
The rate of volunteerism of our city makes this community special in the province.
One cannot imagine what these evacuees must be going through. Many were not prepared for a quick evacuation, so they barely had enough time to gather what they could and get on the road.
With the College of New Caledonia set up as the emergency reception centre, the magic began to happen.
In no time at all, folks were offering their homes and properties to others in need.
Through social media, folks were poring out with offers to house, feed and help not just the two-legged creatures but the four legged and feathered pets as well.
Citizens as well as the city have opened barns doors in a big way with clean stalls and pastures ready and waiting for equine guests.
The P.G. Humane Society and local commercial kennels are providing goods and services for the companion animals.
Our veterinary offices are helping with obtaining medications that were left behind in the rush.
Many local facilities and businesses have offered to help our guest with showers for the campers, exercise equipment, entertainment activities and often a cup of coffee or tea and friendly welcome.
Restaurants are offering discounts to evacuees.
Got to love Prince George. I sure do.
To me, the true heroes are the men and women on the front lines fighting these fires.
Teams are coming as far away as New Brunswick to help.
Whoever said that being a firefighter was a glamorous job?
It is non-stop and dangerous.
My niece Deb is married to a firefighter.
She worries every time her hubby steps out the door.
What has my knickers in a knot is some of the hysteria that is also being distributed, primarily via social media. Factual information is not easy to obtain.
Do not depend on Facebook. Double check your news sources. There is a big difference between an order to evacuate and an alert. On top of that, Bob Simpson, mayor of Quesnel, has reported scammers are going door-to-door posing as fire marshals with evacuation alerts.
We are all familiar with the horrendous fires that wiped out so much of Fort McMurray in May 2016.
Those folks never forgot the help they received. They are paying it forward with obtaining and delivering the forgotten supplies needed from their own evacuation experience. They are giving advice that we need to listen to.
Now is not the time to clean out our junk and yes, I do mean junk. It is the time to give up that Starbucks money and donate it to a place where it will do good, like the Red Cross or the Salvation Army, who in turn can purchase in bulk what is needed.
CNC is where you can find out what exactly is needed such as diapers, new pillows, hygiene supplies and clothes.
Forget about those bell bottoms from the '60s.
In May 2015, reacting to the Little Bobtail wildfire which covered over 250 square kilometres, Bob Simpson stated that the province does a good job of reacting to wildfires, but, after the 2003 Kelowna wildfires, the province is over 10 years too late in implementing preventive measures.
We cannot control lightning strikes. We can try harder to fix stupid, those people responsible for the human caused wildfires.
Will the B.C. government do something this time around? Prince George is surrounded by forests. Our house is a park's tinder dry grass fire away from the Cranbrook Hill forested escarpment. Thousands of others in Prince George are in similar potential danger.
We are all responsible. We must be proactive.
