Many people in the Drayton Valley area have been lucky and haven’t had their homes damaged by the wildfires, but not everyone has been so fortunate.
Four homes on the outskirts of Drayton Valley were destroyed by the fire. Further north, the fire in Parkland County destroyed Pembina River Tubing. This business allowed visitors to have a fun day on the river.
Pembina River Tubing was started in 2007 by Cheryl Harris and her husband, Dan. They watched as their business went up in smoke when the fire came last week.
Cheryl described how she saw the fire start and tried to prepare by organizing their personal belongings. She watched the fire approach their property and knew it would be destroyed.
“(at) 2:30 PM, I saw the fire close to the property on the south side. I knew it was going to be finished. Nothing was stopping this monster this time,” Cheryl told The Drayton Valley and District Free Press.
Despite efforts by aircraft to stop the flames, the wind was too strong, and the fire reached their property.
Cheryl watched helplessly as everything they had built, including the general store, the security cabin, and the rental booths, was destroyed along with all the tubes and life jackets.
Since then, Cheryl has received messages from many people who enjoyed their time on the river and appreciated the service provided by Pembina River Tubing.
“We are glad we are safe, but everything we had built from 2007 to now is gone. Time to reinvent our business and move forward…Thank you, Pembina River Tubing, for all the memories you gave us,” said Cheryl.
But Cheryl and her husband are determined to find another way to keep customers coming back to enjoy the river. They are grateful that the firefighters were able to save the nearby town of Entwistle from the fire.
Cheryl believes that their community will bounce back from this tragedy. They will come together and find new ways to rebuild and continue their work.
