It’s been a year since Devyn Gale, 19, was killed by a cedar tree that fell on her while she was fighting a wildfire outside of Revelstoke.
Gale was one of the first people at the Hiren Creek fire, on a steep, heavily forested slope in the Monashee Mountains. Her brother Nolan Gale was in the four-person crew that day, as well. Although the fire was visible from Revelstoke, about 210 kilometres northeast of Kamloops, it wasn’t seen as a threat.
Devyn Gale was in her third season with the B.C. Wildfire Service when she died on July 13, 2023.
A year later, B.C. Wildfire Service members continue to grieve her loss and they planned to lay down their tools and observe a moment of silence on the anniversary of her death, they said in a statement.
Devyn Gale came from a firefighting family and her younger sister, Kayln Gale, is also a firefighter. The Columbia Fire Zone unit, based in Revelstoke, nicknamed the family Gale Force.
Thousands of people watched Devyn Gale’s funeral, which was livestreamed from Revelstoke Secondary School on July 24, 2023. And Kalyn Gale addressed the hundreds of people, including B.C. Premier David Eby, who were at the service.
She said the extreme temperatures, frequency and intensity of fires, wouldn’t stop because her sister died.
Maybe it’s the call to action we need, she said during the service.
“To finally ask ourselves if we’re fine, with every summer having record-breaking fires, and record-breaking temps, and record-breaking natural disasters.”
On Thursday, Eby reflected on the anniversary of her death.
“It was devastating for her home community of Revelstoke, it was devastating for her family, and I think for all British Columbians that learned of it,” he said.
“She was a remarkable person. She was in nursing school, she was a firefighter in her spare time, standing up for British Columbians out in the woods.”
In September, his office created a task force of experts to study what the province could do differently in response to wildfires, after the record-breaking 2023 season.
The group made 31 recommendations, some of which have already been implemented, Eby said.
More firefighting crews have been hired and they are getting more training and mental health support. In addition, more partnering with municipalities, regional districts and First Nations is underway and technology is being used to improve communication and fire predictivity.
WATCH | Former gymnastics coach says Devyn Gale was ‘so special’:
Wildfire fighter Devyn Gale spent nine years as a competitive gymnast at Revelstoke Acrobats. Her head coach, Jill Drakes, described their club as a family and said they are all deeply grieving the loss of “one of the most beautiful humans you could ever meet.”
As this year’s wildfire season churns ahead with more than 150 fires burning in B.C. and out-of-province crews offering support, many people are remembering Devyn Gale.
Tom Taylor, a West Vancouver musician, is one of them. He learned about Gale through the news and was so moved he wrote a song.
“Devyn Gale grabbed her gear, her pulaski and her pack, headed out of Revelstoke never to come back,” he sings in the piece, which is being played on Stoke FM, the local radio station in Revelstoke.
Taylor said he’s been thinking about Gale throughout the year.
“It got under my skin,” he said. “It’s just heartbreaking.”