As residents of B.C.'s Shuswap region work desperately to protect their homes, government officials are urging them to stop seizing equipment intended for provincial firefighting crews.
Over the weekend, the B.C. Wildfire Service reported that essential gear such as pumps, sprinklers, hoses and all-terrain vehicles has been disappearing in the North Shuswap area.
That includes sprinklers set up to prevent the Scotch Creek Bridge from catching fire, which have already been stolen three times.
The person you’re responding to is basically making the, “steal a loaf of bread to feed your family” argument. It’s complicated by the fact that loaf of bread was already reserved for saving others, but it’s stupid to act like they’re a deranged person without a point.
The desire to not die is a strong one; stronger than logic.
That’s a spurious argument here, though. This is like not buying groceries for two months, having the cash to buy groceries, then stealing a loaf of bread to feed the family.
These people shouldn’t be there, they’re on evacuation order, and they have safe routes to leave. Not one of their lives is in danger that they haven’t chosen. But they did choose - to put their property ahead of their own lives, and in stealing fire equipment they’re putting their own property ahead of the lives of fire response teams and ahead of all the other properties in the same area. They’re willing to have the whole neighborhood burn around them, to cut off safe evacuation routes, all to try and save their own home.
They’re engaging in sophistry and misrepresenting the situation to try and make hindering firefighting efforts into something personally justifiable. It isn’t.
I get that. Then they should leave the area as the authorities requested, not steal equipment from firefighters.
When property overrides lives we’ve completely lost our humanity.