Desert Park has been chosen as a location to house animals evacuated by local disasters. Desert Park Exhibition Society board member Paddy Head (left) and ALERT Canada director of operations Deborah McBride, along with the help of volunteers, are working to get the facility ready in case of wildfires this summer. (Vanessa Broadbent / Osoyoos Times)

By Vanessa Broadbent

Osoyoos Times

Osoyoos’ Desert Park may seem quiet and peaceful now, but that could change if “the big one” hits.

The facility has been selected as one of ALERT (Animal Lifeline Emergency Response Team) Canada’s animal evacuation centres serving the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen for local flooding and fire evacuations, and even the province in case of a larger disaster like the predicted earthquake off Vancouver’s Pacific coast.

Volunteers with  ALERT Canada and the Desert Park Exhibition Society are working to make the facility ready to go in case of any emergency, said Deborah McBride, director of operations for ALERT Canada.

“We talk about ‘the big one’ in Vancouver, and this would be the first stop because Vancouver is a city of bridges. The people who can get out with animals, they would end up probably here.”

ALERT Canada reached out to the society because of its large facility and accessibility.

“It’s so beautifully set up,” McBride said. “In other communities you put horses in just a stall and they’re used to having 10 to 100 acres where they can roam free, and then you have to worry about getting them out and exercised.”

Desert Park has about 120 stalls, society board member Paddy Head said, and along with the five barns, there’s also a dirt racetrack, an outdoor arena and an RV park.

“It just doesn’t get any better than this,” McBride said. “People can come and actually stay here and it’s comfortable for the animals.”

In a major event, the park would house animals, pets or livestock, and their owners from across the province, but ALERT Canada and the society are also working to prepare for local evacuations.

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Last year Desert Park housed local horses displaced from local flooding and fires, and this year it’s working with ALERT Canada to be open for more animals.

“We made it through floods without anything this year, which was pretty significant because we were really expecting some action,” McBride said.

“I feel tentative because we know they’re saying this is going to be the hottest driest summer of recorded time. But we never expected to make it through flood season but we did, so maybe we’ll make it through fire season without any incidents down here.”

Either way, Desert Park is ready to take in whatever animals are displaced. While they’re still gathering supplies, it comes down to having an emergency plan, McBride said.

“That’s the key,” she said, and not just for Desert Park. Residents should make sure to have personal emergency plans as well. It can be as simple as having an emergency kit in your vehicle, or having a mutual aid agreement with someone in another geographical area.

“There are so many people who are right downtown who think ‘I don’t need an emergency plan because I live in an area where it’s not going to bother me.’ You need an emergency plan,” McBride said.

While ALERT Canada has volunteers from across the Okanagan, it’s hoping for more from Osoyoos, McBride said.

“We should be able to do it at a local level and only for a huge event should we have to supplement from volunteers coming from elsewhere.”

All skill and experience levels are welcome, and volunteer jobs range from helping with paperwork to walking dogs.

Anyone interested can apply at alertcanada.org.