by Carol Volkart, DRA Newsletter Editor
The Aug. 6 fire that destroyed an under-construction Dunbar apartment block, consumed two houses, damaged others, and forced 81 people to evacuate is a stark reminder of how disasters can happen anytime, anywhere, says Dunbar Earthquake and Emergency Preparedness (DEEP) director John Halldorson.
It’s also a reminder of how those who are prepared can keep their heads and even help out when disasters happen, said Halldorson, citing the actions of a group of residents who used buckets, hoses and ladders to prevent the fire spreading to nearby homes and gardens.
One of those residents just happened to be Katarina Halm, who has lived in Dunbar for 45 years and helped found DEEP in 2011. When she saw flames leaping hundreds of feet into the air less than a block from her home, she did what those trained in emergency-preparedness do – she stayed calm and worked with her neighbours to prevent the fire from spreading.
“People came running with buckets of water and everybody put their hoses out on the street and we got all the ladders we could find,” she recalled, noting that in addition to residents, many young women and men from farther away showed up to help.
“A courageous boy on our street and half a dozen kids came from far away to help. Some even arrived on bare feet. I gave shoes and we continued dousing the fire. I opened the door and filled buckets with water, left the water running in the sink and came in and out with more water. People were grabbing the buckets, tossing them on the embers, running back for more water again.
“People spotted embers on the roofs and all in the neighbourhood were helping those who could climb to go up the ladders with hoses and buckets. A resourceful young woman stepped onto a chair that I put by her feet – from the chair she climbed a post to pull herself up onto a roof with the hose I handed her, pouring water on ember after ember until the roof was no longer burning.
“We all worked hard for a good half hour or so. The fire department focused on the main fire and neighbours helped on our streets. When the fire department turned to our street, some of us were evacuated to Crofton House School.”
Their work did not go unnoticed. Vancouver fire crews were stretched thin because of an earlier fire, and needed all the help they could get. In a CTV News report, Deputy Chief Robert Weeks credited support from civilians in the area, as well as from Richmond and Burnaby fire crews, for helping prevent further destruction.
Halldorson said the fire proved the value of a trained, prepared populace in times of disaster. As an original member of DEEP with some emergency training, Halm knew the importance of taking quick action and working with neighbours: “One thing is not to panic and to take what action you can.”
For Halldorson, who was driving down Collingwood when he was suddenly caught in a tangle of cars that were impeding first responders, the blaze emphasized the difference between those who help in a disaster and those who thoughtlessly make things worse. “It kind of showed the best and worst: Those who were wrapped up in looky-loo stuff, as if getting a picture for social media was the most important thing, and those who rallied quickly to do what they could to help.”
For DEEP chair Chris Green, the most important lesson from the fire was it showed the “latent reserve of willingness to help in dire situations that exists in the population at large” – as exemplified by those who jumped in to help put out the smouldering roofs of strangers.
“I think it is perfectly right to think that such spontaneous stepping-up will occur on a larger scale, and not only for the more crisis-type aspects of a major disaster’s wake,” he said. “It is people such as these who are going to be the backbone of the community-generated response after a devastating earthquake.” To harness that willingness, DEEP is developing a training program for the general public, which may be offered next spring.
Halldorson said the fire is also a reminder of the importance of readily accessible “grab-and-go kits” containing important documents and basic necessities in case of a sudden disaster like the fire. Many residents had very little with them when they had to leave their homes: Grace Wuschke, who lives on West 41st across from the fire, left with only her keys, phone and a flashlight.
Halm said the blaze has dramatically raised awareness on her block. “It’s very much a blessing in disguise in many, many ways. We had a disaster; everyone survived, and now we know to be ready. We all have our hard hats, our boots and gloves, and they’re not hidden away, they’re all ready. It’s not hypothetical anymore, it’s tangible, and it will be with us forever.”
Halldorson said the fire shows how disasters can erupt out of the blue. “It was a beautiful quiet evening in Dunbar, and who could know that people would shortly be forced out of their houses by fire?”
Or, as Vancouver Fire Rescue Service Chief Karen Fry said Aug. 7: “For those people who only think these types of events – and wildfires – (occur) in climates outside of Metro Vancouver, have a look at what happened last night.”
