The Regional District Central Okanagan (RDCO) is launching a public awareness and engagement campaign as the freshet and wildfire seasons approach.

Staff told the RDCO Board at its April 11 meeting that the initiative aims to assess and enhance residents乌鸦传媒� preparedness for emergencies.

乌鸦传媒淭he overarching goal is to encourage communities to take steps to be better prepared,乌鸦传媒� said Kari O乌鸦传媒橰ourke, communications officer.

Campaign goals include ensuring residents know where to get emergency information, how to put together a 72-hour emergency kit, and how to support neighbours.

Referencing the McDougall Creek wildfire, West Kelowna May Gord Milsom said he would like evacuation, alert and emergency services registration information put out quickly during an emergency.

乌鸦传媒淲e don乌鸦传媒檛 know when we乌鸦传媒檙e going to be faced with another wildfire, but it乌鸦传媒檚 on the minds of our residents, particularly after last year,乌鸦传媒� he added. 乌鸦传媒淲e want to make sure they know what to do if they乌鸦传媒檙e called upon to leave their homes again.乌鸦传媒�

The NDP government was criticized for a backlog of evacuees waiting for support and accommodation during the McDougall Creek fire.

READ MORE: BC United claims NDP punishing West Kelowna evacuees

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Milsom乌鸦传媒檚 neighbour to the south, Peachland Mayor Patrick Van Minsel pointed out that while communication is key, getting the public乌鸦传媒檚 attention is equally important.

He used the low turnout for his community乌鸦传媒檚 FireSmart Open House on April 6 as an example.

乌鸦传媒淎 hundred of my residents, it乌鸦传媒檚 not even one per cent of the total population,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淭he way that we found is best to communicate with them, is having a newsletter direct in their mailbox.乌鸦传媒�

Van Minsel added the board could also lobby senior government for additional funding for wildfire mitigation work.

A grant for residents to FireSmart their properties was recently increased to $1,000 from $500. Lake Country Mayor Blair Ireland felt that amount is still not enough.

乌鸦传媒淢any of these private properties are like guns pointed at our communities and their neighbours,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檙e not incentivizing those people enough.乌鸦传媒�

The Community Readiness Public Engagement runs from April 15 to May 12 and will include open houses, and media campaigns.

Additional resources are available on the and websites.

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