‘Just an awful scene’: Sask. baseball teams forced to flee Kelowna due to wildfire risk

It was a sight Broden Bilokreli won’t soon forget – stepping off his flight at Kelowna’s International Airport and witnessing an ambient orange glow cover the mountains in the distance.

“You could see the smoke kind of bellowing over the mountain. You’d look up at it, you’d see that orange hue and it’s like ‘Man, why are we even here?’”

The reason was baseball. Bilokreli works as a coach for the Vale Country Parkland Expos – a 18U AA team based in Yorkton.

Kelowna was set to host the annual AA Western Canadian Baseball Championships this weekend.

The event saw 15 teams from 13U, 15U and 18U divisions travel from across western Canada to compete.

Three of the teams hailed from Saskatchewan: The Prince Albert Royals, the Lumsden Cubs and the Expos.

Due to the worsening wildfire situation in B.C., it was only a matter of time before the blazes affected the tournament.

Arriving on the night of Aug. 17 – the Expos started off their first game on Friday but didn’t get far.

“We played not even four complete innings and the CBA rep came out and talked to me and the coach from Vancouver. They said they were going to suspend the game until the air quality got a little better,” Bilokreli said.

“So, we went to the mall to kill some time and we got an email saying that they cancelled the whole tournament.”

Massive plumes of smoke can be seen near Kelowna, B.C on Aug. 17. The 2023 Western Canada Baseball Championships were cancelled due to worsening wildfires in the area. (Courtesy: Borden Bilokreli)

Brian Trollope – secretary and treasurer for the Western Canada Baseball Association (WCBA) – said the cancellation needed to happen.

“The smoke rolled in and the fires got way too close and we needed to look out for the people that lived there and not just our ball teams,” he told CTV News.

“So in light of all that we decided that we needed to cancel that tournament.”

It was a disappointing end to the Expos season – but players were sure to recognize the situation at hand.

“Everyone was pretty understanding though because our baseball tournament being cancelled is pretty minor compared to people losing their homes,” Bilokreli said.

With Kelowna’s airport closed – the team had to scramble to find alternative ways of getting back home.

“One of the players had a set of grandparents that drove so we had some people that were able to get out with them. And then other families had rental cars that we were able to get out of B.C with,” Bilokreli said.

“I mean we’re just fortunate that we got out.”

(Courtesy: Borden Bilokreli)

As for a potential redo of the tournament – Trollope is doubtful one will come together.

“To try do it in Kelowna, they’re in devastation right now. I know one of the umpires that’s working the girl’s tournament in Richmond – his house burned down while he was umping in Richmond so it’s pretty serious,” he said.

“And if our guys can get out of those hotel rooms it opens them up for people that need them.”

Despite the long trip and disappointing end to the Expos’ season – Bilokreli hopes that the situation gets better for those living in Kelowna.

“We kind of talked to the Kelowna team – they were watching our game – and some of the guys on that team were either directly affected or they had families and friends that they knew on the west side of Kelowna that were losing their homes,” he said.

“Really just an awful scene.”

(Courtesy: Borden Bilokreli)

On Sunday, authorities in Kelowna announced that local fire fighting efforts may have turned a corner.

Kelowna’s fire services said that no new homes were destroyed by the McDougall Creek wildfire in the past 24 hours – following days of destruction.

Approximately 36,000 people are subject to evacuation alerts across B.C.

With files from The Canadian Press.