08/22/2026
Shoutout to Ben Phillips, a Great Way student who, in a stressful situation, acted with great resolve and care for neighbors that he didn't know, and who now consider him a hero. A story of a neighborhood coming together.
Early morning August 21st, a fire had started in my neighbour's yard area. A man I don't know was trying to enjoy his breakfast; he saw the smoke, he called the fire department, and ran towards the situation to try and wake people up and warn them. Thank you! You rock!
As a neighborhood slowly woke up to a spreading problem, Ben showed up (he lives about 3 blocks away), ran into the yard that’s starting to burn, grabbed their garden hose, and started trying to soak the yard and building - even before the person whose house it is knew there was a problem. She woke to Ben trying to protect her home and swears that the only reason there was not more damage is that Ben showed up!
Sadly, it turned bad when a propane tank blew. Thankfully, no one was hurt. And as the full Kelowna fire crews are arriving, they brought 4 or 5 full crews, and like Batman, Ben vanishes (I think he went to work). As Ben left, neighbors who pass by each other daily were out, giving each other comfort, coffee, and couches to rest on while the professionals got to work protecting the house and putting out the garage fire. Thank you, Kelowna Fire Department and RCMP, for your fantastic service. Thank you to all the neighbors who stepped up. And a huge thank you to Ben Phillips for being absolutely amazing!
UPDATE 8:20 a.m. Mounties are investigating a structure fire that occurred early Friday, in the alley behind the 1000-block of Martin Avenue.
