The citizens of Clova are exhausted after spending entire nights putting out forest fires to “save their village”. Underserved by their community, they had to spend thousands of dollars building their own makeshift “fire trucks.”
• Also read: Wildfires: Legault caused panic in Clova
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“We saved the village, that’s for sure!” ton Marc Sigouin, resident of Clova.
Two weeks ago, on June 5th, many Quebecers learned from the words of Prime Minister François Legault that the small hamlet of Clova, north of La Tuque, was threatened by forest fires and had to be “let burn”.
In reality, everything was decided for this village only a few days before this controversial declaration.
On June 1, the flames suddenly begin to get closer. SOPFEU, which will quickly be overwhelmed by the number of fires across Quebec, then begins dispatching personnel to Clova.
The citizens tirelessly watered the forest around Clova for days. Photo courtesy of Marc Sigouin
“We’ve turned a 30 under.
About twenty people were evacuated the next day.
Fearing the worst, a group of townspeople, including Marc Sigouin, decide to stay and mobilize within hours to act as firefighters.
However, the only equipment provided by the municipality of La Tuque, an old water pump, has given up the ghost.
The citizens, some of whom own an outfitter, therefore resort to their own equipment and demonstrate their ingenuity. Old 10,000 liter oil tanks and hoses are attached to trailers and trucks.
“We developed Flintstone fire engines,” says Mr. Sigouin. We turned on 30 sous,” continues the 60-year-old, who met at his home in the old village church.
Marc Sigouin even claims he smuggled in volunteers who wanted to help them by leading them past police checkpoints blocking the streets.
In support of SOPFEU, which was mainly responsible for digging trenches, citizens put out numerous fires that were constantly burning.
“Water was being irrigated all around Clova,” says Yanick Bourdeau, one of the employees of the Lake Tessier outfitter who was involved in this joint effort. We drowned the wood.”
While the core of the village could have been spared, some chalets have not, including one about ten miles away which has sadly been reduced to rubble, Le Journal noted.
The flames completely reduced a chalet in Clova to rubble. PHOTO CREDIT OLIVIER FAUCHER TAKEN ON JUNE 17, 2023 Photo Olivier Faucher
endless days
Since the SOPFEU firefighters always left the village at 5 p.m., the residents felt obliged to spend the night putting out fires.
“It worried us, but at least we had a good citizen team,” says Meggie Richard, who works at Auberge Clova.
Marc Sigouin no longer counts the days he finished at 4am. He has tears in his eyes when he thinks back to the past few weeks. “At some point I have to stop because I get depressed.”
He and several citizens interviewed by Le Journal bemoaned the lack of support from the La Tuque community.
“We need firefighting equipment,” asks Mr. Sigouin. It needs a garage to work. We pay taxes but we have no service!”
Instead, Clova had to start a GoFundMe, which raised nearly $6,000 in three days. In particular, they received equipment from the Magog fire department.
Nowadays, the village expects the presence of dozens of Canadian Forces soldiers and a SOPFEU command post, but some do not want to claim victory and fear the next scenario, in which the village may no longer be a priority.
“We are still on alert. They’re announcing a big heatwave this week, so it’s still good to go,” warns Yanick Bourdeau.
Where is Clova?
The hamlet of Clova is part of the vast territory of the municipality of La Tuque. Only about forty people live there permanently, but the village grows each summer due to the cabins and numerous outfitters in the area. To get there from Montreal, drive via Mont-Saint-Michel in the Laurentians before driving through the village of Parent on forest roads for about four hours. Believe it or not, it’s also possible to get there by train from the Central Station and get off at the station from the village’s founding days. The journey takes about 10 to 12 hours.
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