Roughly 150 firefighters from South Korea touched down in Ottawa Sunday afternoon as part of their journey to northern Quebec to fight dozens of wildfires still raging there.
Will be dispatched to fight fires in northern Quebec
CBC News
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Some 150 firefighters from South Korea touched down in Ottawa Sunday afternoon as part of their journey to northern Quebec to fight dozens of wildfires still raging there.
After a 13-hour flight, they were greeted at the Ottawa International Airport by dignitaries that included Treasury Board President Mona Fortier and Lim Woongsoon, South Korea’s ambassador to Canada.
“Korea stands ready to be among the first to come to Canada when Canada is in need,” Lim told Radio-Canada in an interview.
“We are not going to forget that Canada has already been with us when Korea was in need. That’s what best friends are supposed to do.”
The firefighters will first stop in Maniwaki, Que., and spend two days receiving technical instructions, before being deployed in Lebel-sur-Quévillon, Que., roughly 800 kilometres northwest of Montreal.
The town of approximately 2,000 people has already been evacuated twice in recent weeks due to the wildfire threat.
The crews have been preparing for a couple of months and are ready to tackle the “exceptional” situation, said Kweon Ki-hwan, who is leading the South Korean disaster relief effort.
According to SOPFEU, Quebec’s forest fire agency, roughly 100 fires are still active in the province.
“They’re eager to contribute in your efforts in containing wildfires. They are fully prepared. They are professional people,” said Kweon.
“We very much hope that we can meet the challenges and we can contribute a lot.”
Firefighting a ‘universal language’
The firefighters are just the latest international brigade to arrive in Quebec to help local crews deal with the blazes, said SOPFEU communications officer Mélanie Morin.
They’re expected to stay in Canada for about a month, Morin said.
“Simply put, we need extra firefighters to help put out the wildfires. We have over 1.2 million hectares that are burning in the province,” Morin said.
Morin said international firefighters have already been dispatched from countries like France, Spain and Portugal. The South Koreans will have access to interpreters to help with any language barriers, she added.
“Firefighting is a pretty universal language,” Morin said. “Everything should work out fine.”
With files from Radio-Canada’s Patrick Foucault
