On June 30, 2021, the town of Lytton in British Columbia was destroyed by an out-of-control wildfire. The aftermath saw a lot of anger and finger pointing, with all levels of government roundly criticized.
Three months later, Michael Mehta, lead author of a Thompson Rivers University study examining B.C.‘s communications practices during the 2017 and 2018 wildfire seasons, said:
“When it comes to wildfire risk management and other disasters, we need to improve dramatically, right now, how we deal with things before they happen…The biggest issue…was how to put out credible, timely information that gave people the right tools to make decisions.”
