July 20--Two men were arrested Tuesday and one had his firearms seized after threatening firefighters working in wildfire-ravaged British Columbia.
The Langley Times reports that firefighters who were hard at work near the city of Williams Lake were confronted by a group of men, one of whom had threatened to kill them if they continued conducting a controlled burn in the area. The 44-year-old man who issued the threat and a 57-year-old who was wearing a holstered sidearm were both arrested after the firefighter called Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Two handguns and six rifles were subsequently seized from the older of the two men.
"In speaking with this fireman, RCMP learned that while working in an area of Springfield Road ... a local resident had allegedly threatened to kill firefighters if they continued to conduct back burning in the area," said RCMP Cpl. Janelle Shoihet.
"With this male was a group of other males, one of whom was alleged to have been carrying a handgun on his hip."
The men told police that the threats were made at a time of "extreme stress."
The emotional distress in British Columbia is palpable with dozens of wildfires forcing the evacuations of over 45,000 people, which media reports say is one of the largest displacement events in the history of the province.
"We understand that tensions are running high, but we have to continue to pull together as a community to fight the fires in whatever way we can," said Inspector Jeff Pelley, Offficer in Charge of the Williams Lake RCMP.
