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What if someone refuses to leave their home when an evacuation order is issued?

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Evacuation orders are a simple fact of life during wildfire season, but what happens when home owners refuse to obey them?

As far as our laws are concerned, criminal lawyer Michael Shapray says there isn’t much to compel you to obey an order.

“The police and the local authorities are engaged and they’re given the authority to enforce the orders, but I don’t see that there is any legal consequences, in terms of people being arrested if they absolutely refuse to leave their homes.”

However, Shapray says there are measures in place if children are involved, as he says the Ministry of Children and Family Development has broad jurisdiction to move in if is a child is in danger.

“If someone were to refuse to leave their home and there were to be children in the home, I think the ministry would move in quickly and could remove the children.”

In parts of the United States, as Shapray points out, the police have the power to arrest those who refuse to obey an evacuation order, but he admits such instances are still quite rare.

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