Submitted by Nelson Fire and Rescue Services
On Saturday, May 27, volunteers will remove remove logs, branches and dead trees along a section of Rail Trail to reduce the ability of a wildfire to travel through the firebreak.
The second annual FireSmart Day event is hosted by the Nelson Fire and Rescue Services and the Regional District of Central Kootenay Wildfire Mitigation Program.
“The Rail Trail is an recreational corridor for our community,” says Nelson’s fire chief Jeff Hebert. “It also acts as a fire break and just like we all need to FireSmart our properties, we also need to FireSmart this firebreak so a fire is less likely to impact our community.”
We are still looking for a handful of volunteers, so if you are able to help from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. please go to https://firesmartnelson.eventbrite.com. All volunteers must be registered in advance to participate. A light lunch and a Nelson FireSmart Team T-shirt will be provided to all volunteers.
Signs will be posted along the trail where the work will be taking place to inform trail users what is happening. The trail will remain open but there will be a lot of work going on and we ask for trail user’s patience and understanding. There will also be some informative and educational signage along the trail that will remain in place to help explain what has been done and how FireSmart works.
This event is made possible thanks to funding from Columbia Basin Trust and support from BC Wildfire Service. It is sure to be a day full of community spirit, fun, wildfire education and a little elbow grease.