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Rise Johansen is among those in British Columbia who has decided against obeying an evacuation order because of a wildfire, choosing instead to remain behind in Takysie to help those who are remaining in their homes.

On Friday, she said the sun was out and the smoke had lifted slightly.

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“It’s a very odd experience because sometimes you wouldn’t even hardly know there’s a fire,” said Johansen, co-owner of Takysie Lake Resort.

Johansen and her husband are two of the last people left for a tiny community of about 20 homes on Takysie Lake in central British Columbia. Takysie Lake is about a 30-minute drive from Francois Lake, where others have remained in their homes despite an evacuation order.

As the fires snaked through the area, people’s homes were evacuated and the Johansens also left before returning.

“We just went down the road a little bit and then we’ve come back,” she said in a telephone interview on Friday. “We didn’t feel like we were in imminent danger the night they started to evacuate.”