A village destroyed by fire vowed to rebuild the right way. Then the fights began.

After a massive fire destroyed Lytton, B.C., the village was to be a model of climate resilience. Some residents say the effort is standing in the way of rebuilding.

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December 16, 2022 at 5:55 a.m. EST
A monument to a married couple who died when fire swept through Lytton in June 2021. Residents who want to stay are becoming frustrated with the slow pace of recovery as archaeological and environmental work continues in the area. (Alana Paterson for The Washington Post)
11 min

LYTTON, British Columbia — Owen Collings stood on the far side of the river and watched his village burn.

The howling fire tornadoes whipped by 40 mph winds. The explosions as parked cars and propane tanks erupted. From the moment the flames torched his own home on the south end of the village to when they engulfed the new mayor’s white-picket fence on the north side took less than an hour.