Smokey Bear was born on August 9, 1944, when the U.S. Forest Service and the Ad Council agreed on a fictional bear as the symbol for a joint effort to promote forest fire prevention.
Artist Albert Staehle was the original artist, who depicted Smokey pouring a bucket of water on a campfire and saying “Care will prevent 9 out of 10 fires.”
In 1947, the bear’s slogan became the familiar “Only YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires!” Smokey soon after became popular across the US as his image appeared on a variety of forest fire prevention materials.
Smokey Bear’s popularity inevitably extended into Canada, where he charismatically served as an unofficial mascot for decades, including recently within BC. However, this year Canada has decided to retire Smokey—at least regionally—in favour of a local replacement.
“We felt it was time for Canada to have its own voice regarding wildfire preparedness,” stated FireSmart BC, a government program.
FireSmart has conceived Ember, a female red fox born in British Columbia. According to the organization, Ember articulates a more sophisticated approach than “Only YOU can prevent forest fires.”
“These days our knowledge of wildfire—how it spreads, the role it plays in nature, the heightened risks associated with the wildland-urban interface, etc.—is far more extensive,” says FireSmart. “Decades of observation and study have taught us so much, not just about how to prevent wildfire, but also how to fight it, [and] how to manage it with prescribed burning.”
FireSmart principles and practices place primary emphasis on cooperation, both within and between communities, as the cornerstone of wildfire mitigation and resiliency. If the right strategies are designed and implemented, fires can be managed in such a way as to limit their impacts in terms of damage, cost, and loss of life.
“Ember will serve as a key tool to help us communicate to BC residents the importance of adopting FireSmart principles and best practices,” stated Kelsey Winter, FireSmart BC program lead and chair of the BC FireSmart Committee.
The fox mascot was named after holding a contest that received over 500 submissions from across the country. Arlene S. from Swansea Point in BC submitted the winning name.
“My choice of Ember as the FireSmart fox came from the fact that … an ember can turn from a smouldering ground fire to a forest fire in moments,” said Arlene. “As I live in a forested area … FireSmart is very important to me, just in case the inevitable happens.”
Despite extended dry conditions in Boundary Country, this season’s wildfires have been easily controlled. Still, it’s good to be FireSmart and know how to contend with smoke.
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