‘We’re not prepared’: Leeds and Grenville area candidate shares experience, lessons after caught in L.A. wildfires

The new year got off to a scary start for Leeds, Grenville Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes provincial Liberal candidate Lorna Jean (L.J.) Edmonds, who found herself scrambling to make the safest decisions amid the chaos of raging wildfires in Los Angeles. When Edmonds set off on her 17-day trip to visit her daughter, film producer Anna Jane (A.J.) Edmonds, she had no idea the dramatic turn this trip would take. 

​​Having returned to Canada, Edmonds spoke with Brockvilleist in an in-depth interview about her experience in L.A., and how this dire situation has reinforced her belief in the importance of inclusive emergency preparedness. She highlighted the vulnerability of disabled individuals and the elderly, especially in rural communities, should we face a natural disaster such as this. 

While unease and panic filled the streets during the onset of the fires, Edmonds and her daughter decided to volunteer for fire relief efforts by assisting with food distribution near the evacuation zone.

“It was quite fascinating to experience that and see how quickly communities respond. It’s really touching. Not knowing whether or not their own lives were in danger at that point. Here we were, you know, doing our best and trying to be responsible.”

She was quick to praise the courageous response of the coordinated relief efforts by first responders and community volunteers. “It was intense and it was scary, but at the same time, you could feel the force of the emergency services responding.”

Edmonds was particularly moved by the fact that people from all different walks of life and political viewpoints joined together to face this crisis head-on, despite rising tensions after the recent U.S. election. “We’ve got all this stuff going on with Trump right now and the tariffs and threats, and here’s Canada and Mexico rallying around L.A. with other citizens from California and across the United States. It was all hands on deck.”

She noted that it’s unlikely there’s a city in North America set up to respond to a crisis like this one. “This was not over days…[it was] literally a matter of hours. This wasn’t a slow burn. This stuff took off because the wind was phenomenal.”

Edmonds left her daughter to return to Canada on Tuesday, Jan. 14, but she is staying in contact to receive updates in real-time. While she is relieved that her daughter is safe and has returned to her home, she expressed concern about the inevitable aftermath of the catastrophe, fearing for water and air quality and the threat of future fires. 

“It has made me think about how prepared we are for such an eventuality, because we could have a windstorm like that. It could be incredibly destructive. We could have rain flooding and I can tell you we are not prepared. We all know that we’re not prepared.” 

Edmonds shared the stories of multiple victims who perished as a result of the wildfires, including a father who died with his son who suffered from Cerebral Palsy and an elderly woman who was living alone and had no help to evacuate. Fuelled by these tragic stories and having witnessed the fires firsthand, Edmonds is newly incentivized to take action against the lack of rural-focused policies and plans. 

“What it speaks to is the whole disability movement, the whole arena of universal design is that if you include the needs of people with disabilities, everybody benefits. Here is a stark example where if they probably had better emergency preparedness for an eventuality like this, nobody would have died.”

In referring to her local jurisdiction, Edmonds explained, “Like in Brockville, we have a largely aging population who, if we had an experience like this, are probably not going to get out. We may have an emergency plan, but I would be hard-pressed to see that we had an inclusive preparedness plan.”  

She stated that one of her primary reasons for going into politics was her frustration with the oversight of not including a rural lens on most provincial policies, noting the erosion of public services like education, healthcare, and public infrastructure.

“We don’t think about the nuances and the distinctive features that we face as a rural community. I wanted to be part of a community that was rural so that I could help bring resources to that community.”

The candidate plans to send a letters to area residents sharing the Government of Canada’s emergency preparedness plan for people who are vulnerable or living with disabilities and encourage them to review it.

“I naturally come from an inclusive governance background. I actually have my PhD in it, and I’ve worked with people with disabilities all over the world, but especially in the Balkans conflict. And I must admit, I’m shaped by that time and this recent experience.” 

Edmonds also plans to continue advocating for the development of more inclusive emergency preparedness plans locally, encouraging the provincial government to consider the needs of all vulnerable populations.