With 2025 coming to a close, it seems like a good time to get an update from the Cortes Island Fire Department. Currently, there are about 38 people working out of the island’s two fire halls, with another 20 enrolled in the wildfire brigade.
Chief Eli McKenty noted, “I haven’t totalled this year’s call volume yet, but last year we had 105 calls. This year, we’re likely slightly higher at around 110.”
Continue reading 2025 at the Cortes Island Fire Department
By Madeline Dunnett, The Discourse, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
In 1850, Scottish Army Capt. Walter Colquhoun Grant planted a European perennial shrub on his farm on T’Sou-ke Nation’s traditional territory (Sooke). He thought the shrub — Cytisus scorparius in Latin — would bring back nostalgia of his Scottish homeland, covered with hills of yellow flowers.
One-hundred and seventy-five years later, this shrub is now one of the most notorious invasive species on Vancouver Island known colloquially as Scotch broom. Vast areas of the Island are covered in this plant, exhibiting what a changed landscape can look like if invasive plants are allowed to spread and take over. It competes with native plants, disrupts streams and has no known natural predators. It can also live up to 25 years and produces seeds that can survive in the soil for 30 years.
Scotch broom is also extremely flammable, leading to growing concern as the climate changes and Earth warms.
Continue reading Scotch broom increases wildfire risk. What can we do about it?
Part 3 of 3
There hasn’t been a major wildfire on Cortes Island for decades, but this could change as our summer’s grow hotter and drier. The Rainbow Ridge Affordable Housing project is being designed with this in mind.
“The main idea is to try to have more of a FireSmart community and get rid of the conifers that are much more prone to embers catching fire and then catching the neighbor’s houses and vehicles on fire, like we saw in the California fires this winter,” explained Mark Lombard, speaking on behalf of the Cortes Housing Society.
Continue reading FireSmarting Rainbow Ridge
By Bhagyashree Chatterjee, The Squamish Chief, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
As home insurance costs increase due to climate change, mitigation efforts can help residents stabilize their costs.
“We’re seeing more wildfires, floods, and storms driving up insurance costs,” said Justine Bowman, branch manager at Westland Insurance Group.
Over the past decade, the cost of claims related to natural disasters in Canada has tripled, reaching over $2 billion annually on average, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC).
Continue reading How climate change impacts insurance costs
Male voice: “I’ll vividly remember there was a very large wall of flame methodically marching towards Logan Lake and a huge column of smoke coming off of that and looking down at these cul de sacs and thinking, ‘wow, they look so small.’ And in my mind, all I could think was that this is either going to be a great day for Logan Lake, or a horrible day.”
Female voice: “What inspired the first activities in Logan Lake was fear.”
Second female voice: “We’re a small community on top of this beautiful hill surrounded by forest.” – excerpt from ‘the Test.’
There will be a screening of ‘The Test’ in the Mansons Fire Hall at 7 PM, on Thursday, June 20.
“This is a documentary about the Logan Lake wildfire and their success in preparing for it using the FireSmart methods. I believe they had been preparing for 18 years before they had a major wildfire come through the community, “explained, Interim Fire Chief Eli McKenty.
Continue reading Screening of ‘the Test’ On Cortes Island Thursday, June 20, 2024
