Ottawa, Ontario, August 23rd, 2023 - unceded Anishinaabe Algonquin territory.

6 On2Ottawa supporters were arrested during morning rush-hour for  nonviolently disrupting the Laurier Bridge to demand a National  Firefighting Agency. Protestors urge the government to act as wildfires worsen.

“The smoke was so thick from wildfires last weekend that we had to take our  little boy to the mall, he’s two,” says Sara Hall, a mother of a  2-year-old who got arrested at today’s demonstration.

The 6 were arrested near the Canadian Firefighters’ Memorial, a national monument to all firefighters in Canada and their contributions to the  health, safety and prosperity of the nation. Supporters of On2Ottawa are  demanding that the federal government pass appropriate legislation to  implement a National Fire-Fighting Agency with 50,000 professional  firefighters to tackle Canada’s unprecedented wildfires.

“I see all of my peers and my friends and family and we’re suffering and we’re looking at these devastating fires… and I don’t see any action,” says Zoe, a 22-year-old student from Vancouver Island.

This demand comes as Fire Chiefs call to support our firefighters after  years of decreasing funding towards provincial firefighting efforts across the country.

“I  feel like my one job, the most important job right now, as a mother to a  small child is to protect him, that’s it. And unfortunately that means  getting into the road and breaking the law. It’s the only thing that makes sense at this point in time, and it’s the only thing that makes  sense if I want him to have a future,” says Sara Hall.

On2Ottawa  protestors demand an Act of Parliament to address the unprecedented  threat to life, liberty and security of persons due to the wildfires.  They believe that the best way to protect Canadians from fires is  through the creation of a national firefighting agency that can  appropriately coordinate firefighting efforts, thereby supporting our communities and firefighters.