It was August 16, 2003, around 4 a.m. when a lightning strike started a wildfire near Rattlesnake Island in Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park.
It was driven by constant wind and the driest summer on record up to that time. In just a few days, it grew into a firestorm.
The fire and forced the evacuation of 33,000 residents, and burned 239 homes. The final size of the fire was estimated at nearly 26,000 hectares. Most of the trees in the park burned.
60 fire departments, 1,400 Canadian Armed Forces members and 1,000 forest fire fighters fought the blaze.
That total cost to fight the fire was estimated at $33.8 million.
The City of Kelowna Fire Recovery Team was formed in September, 2003 to coordinate recovery efforts. A recovery centre office was established on Bernard Avenue in space donated by RBC, and recovery centre staff helped process social service requests.
The City also established the Kelowna and Area Okanagan Fire Recovery Society. Working with other agencies and groups, society volunteers helped rebuild lives and the community.
The Recovery Society also administered the Kelowna and Area Okanagan Fire Recovery Trust Fund.
Through the generosity of the community, and others across the country, the Society was able to distribute $1.4 million to those impacted by the fire.
-- with files from City of Kelowna --