Whistler prepares for wildfires with plan believed to be a first in B.C. [Video]

The community of Whistler is amping up its wildfire preparedness to preserve and protect the resort municipality if a fire threatens homes and lives.

A new report, presented by Behr Integrated Solutions, provides the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) with an implementation strategy to address recommendations made in the Community Wildfire Resiliency Plan in 2022 when it comes to policy, emergency planning and training.

“As you know, Whistler is a resort community,” Thomas Doherty, the Whistler fire chief told Global News. “A lot of mountains, lakes and streams through here. One of the interesting challenges that we have here is, to our community, it’s very much made up of an intermix.”

Doherty explained that in Whistler, rather than interface, where a neighbourhood borders the forest, the community has a high percentage of intermix, where homes are within the forest.

“So that creates quite a unique challenge for us, particularly, through the area,” he added.

In addition, there is one highway in and out of …