British Columbia’s emergency management minister says the province is proactively working to secure extra firefighters to deal with what she calls the “potential for a drastically accelerated wildfire situation.”
Bowinn Ma says B.C. is seeking out-of-province help from six unit crews representing 180 specialized wildfire fighters, plus management teams.
Ma says about 500 of the province’s full complement of 2,000 firefighters are currently deployed, but the province is seeking the outside help early so there isn’t any lag in firefighting ability as the situation worsens due to a heat wave and ongoing dry conditions.
Wildfire activity has been erupting in recent days, with about 150 active wildfires in B.C., up from fewer than 100 at the start of the week.
British Columbia’s wildfire service says forest fuels are more susceptible to fire starts after seven consecutive days of extreme heat, with new blazes prompting two new evacuation orders in recent days.
The latest spans a portion of the District of Wells, about 80 kilometres east of Quesnel in the province’s central Interior, where the BC Wildfire Service map shows a cluster of more than two dozen new fires in the area.
The district issued the order at 10 p.m. Wednesday night, saying the 70-hectare Cornish Mountain wildfire is a threat to life and safety, and residents must leave right away.
The order covers the Eight- and Nine-Mile Lake Areas, Cornish Lake, and Mine Sites areas, while an evacuation alert is in effect for the rest of the district.
In northeastern B.C., the Fort Nelson First Nation issued an evacuation order Tuesday for its Kahntah reserve, telling residents they had to leave by boat due to the threat of an out-of-control blaze discovered the day before.
Two wildfires are considered fires of note, meaning they are either highly visible or pose a threat to safety or infrastructure.
The BC Wildfire Service says smoke from the two-square-kilometre Little Oliver Creek fire will be visible from Highway 16 and the Terrace, B.C. area.
Meanwhile, the 3.5-square-kilometre Hook Creek fire is burning out of control to the north, near a stretch of the Alaska Highway along the boundary with Yukon.
While temperatures have cooled to more seasonal levels along B.C.’s coast, Environment Canada is maintaining heat warnings for much of the southern Interior and southeast corner of the province.
A severe thunderstorm watch is in effect for the Fort Nelson area which has been the epicentre for drought and fire activity so far this year.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 11, 2024.
The Canadian Press
