VANCOUVER— The B.C. government has declared a state of emergency over the province’s wildfire crisis.The announcement from the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth follows a recommendation from the province’s wildfire and emergency management officials and will be in place for a minimum of two weeks.“Public safety is always our first priority and, as wildfire activity is expected to increase, this is a progressive step in our wildfire response to make sure British Columbia has access to any and all resources necessary,” Farnworth said. “Taking this step will further ensure we can protect the public, property and infrastructure and assist with firefighting efforts.”The state of emergency covers the entire province and will make sure that additional resources from the province, federal government and local governments are made available and properly co-ordinated.In Metro Vancouver, two fire halls announced Wednesday that they are sending crew members to help out in the interior. Vancouver announced over social media that it would deploy “multiple crews,” while neighbouring Port Moody reported that its deputy fire chief left for Fort St. James that morning. Kirk Heaven will be directing or co-directing the emergency operation centre in Fort St. James, explained Ron Coulson, Port Moody’s fire chief.Coulson said the city had received a general call for human-resources support from Emergency Management BC on Monday, but a more specific plea came last night.“Last night the call went out to the fire service in general, looking at ways that we can send physical and human resources that are more related to fire fighting in the interior,” he said.More to comeTessa Vikander is a Vancouver-based reporter covering identity and inequality. Follow her on Twitter: @tessavikander
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