Why some refuse to evacuate during wildfires and how understanding those choices can improve disaster plans [Video]

As out-of-control wildfires threaten communities across central and Western Canada, thousands of people have been forced out of their homes across Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta — but even in the face of mandatory evacuation orders and potential danger, some people may not go willingly, or at all.

It’s a story that’s played out in Pimicikamak Cree Nation in northern Manitoba, where Chief David Monias recently voiced frustration with residents who refused to leave, despite a May 28 mandatory evacuation order spurred by a fire near the community. Monias initially said he planned to use police to round those people up and force them out.

But later in the week, he said authorities had been able to convince holdouts in Pimicikamak — including an elderly man who didn’t believe he’d survive if he left the community, and a family with young kids who thought they’d have the option to drive out later, Monias said — to leave voluntarily. 

Some underestimated the size of the fire. Others …