A cold front moving through southern British Columbia was expected to bring high winds and possible thunderstorms this long weekend, prompting warnings from the B.C. Wildfire Service about the potential for new wildfires and growth of existing blazes.
Several new evacuation orders and alerts were issued Saturday, and the situation was still evolving into the evening. For developments after 7 p.m., follow Emergency Info B.C., DriveBC and the B.C. Wildfire Service, as well as your local government.
Here’s everything that happened earlier in the day:
6:50 p.m. PT: More fires burn near Kimberley
The Wait Creek fire has prompted tactical evacuations for homes in the Ta Ta Creek area off Highway 95.
“People in the Ta Ta Creek area should prepare to leave on short notice,” reads the update from EmergencyInfoBC.
Emergency support services are available to evacuees at Parkland Middle School in Cranbrook.
The out-of-control blaze, discovered this morning, has grown to 160 hectares and is considered a wildfire of note by the B.C. Wildfire Service as of Saturday night.
The Wait Creek fire is burning east of Kimberley, while the Matthew Creek and Tower Creek fires rage to the west.
Officials believe the fire to have been caused by humans.
James Paracy,CTVNewsVancouver.ca
6:35 p.m. PT: Evacuation orders expanded
The Bradley Creek fire has grown and created “a significant risk to life,” according to EmergencyInfoBC.
Flames have jumped across Westside Road, officials said. Those nearby and north of the fire have been ordered to evacuate to Kal Tire Place in Vernon, while anyone south of the fire has been ordered to evacuate to Westbank Lions Club in West Kelowna.
The B.C. Wildfire Service last measured the fire at 1,047 hectares, or 10.47 square kilometres.
James Paracy,CTVNewsVancouver.ca
4:30 p.m. PT: Info for evacuees
Emergency Info B.C. says two reception centres have been set up for people ordered to flee the Bradley Creek fire near the northwest shore of Okanagan Lake.
People north of Newport are being directed to Head of the Lake Hall, 12420 Westside Rd., Vernon, while people south of Newport are being directed to Westbank Lions Club, 2466 Main St., West Kelowna.
“If the road appears to be unsafe, turn around and return the way you came,” the agency said in a social media post. “If you are unable to evacuate, call 911.”
In general, people who have to evacuate their homes can access provincial Emergency Support Services by calling the B.C. Evacuee Helpline at 1-800-387-4258 or by registering online at ess.gov.bc.ca. The helpline is currently active from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
3:55 p.m. PT: Tactical evacuations in Okanagan
The Okanagan Indian Band has issued an evacuation order due to the Bradley Creek Wildfire, and tactical evacuations are underway, according to Emergency Info B.C.
The order applies for all properties north of Mary Emerald Bay Road to Simila Road, and the tactical evacuation—a term that refers to officials going door-to-door to ensure people leave their properties—is happening on Pebble Park Lane.
Evacuees should make arrangements to stay with family/friends or report to the temporary reception centre located at 12420 Westside Rd., Vernon, before travelling elsewhere, Emergency Info B.C. said.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
2:55 p.m. PT: Highway 1 closure expanded, again
Highway 1 has been closed in and around Boston Bar due to the Brunswick Complex wildfires for much of the last month, but the start of the closure has been moving southward on Saturday.
In the morning, DriveBC said, the closure was beginning at the Jackass Mountain summit. By Saturday afternoon, the closure had been extended south to Toll Road in Yale.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
1:45 p.m. PT: Another First Nation on evacuation alert
Like the neighbouring Yale and Spuzzum First Nations, the Shxw’ōwhámél First Nation has issued an evacuation alert due to the Brunswick Complex Saturday.
The alert applies to the nation’s IR3 – Kuthlath, which is east of Yale and on the opposite shore of the Fraser River.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
1:35 p.m. PT: ‘They know something’s not right’
Will Unruh says the 13 bison he cares for at his ranch near the shores of Green Lake in B.C.’s southern Cariboo region know that something is amiss.
“They know something’s not right,” he told The Canadian Press by phone Saturday from his 777 Ranch.
“They’re hanging out right in this little corral, right close to where I am all the time, and that’s because they’re like people, they’re nervous.”
The ranch was put under an evacuation order on Friday, one of multiple orders covering more than 1,000 properties at risk from the 900-square-kilometre Pear Lake wildfire burning out-of-control in the area.
Unruh was still on the property Saturday morning considering how to keep the last of his animals safe.
The Canadian Press
12:40 p.m. PT: Yale First Nation evacuation alerts
Yale First Nation has issued evacuation alerts for its reserves from Yale IR1 through to Stullawheets IR8, in the Dogwood Valley south of Yale, B.C.
The alerts are adjacent to similar measures from the Fraser Valley Regional District, which were prompted Saturday morning by the Brunswick Complex of fires.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
12:25 p.m. PT: Riley Creek wildfire burning south of Lillooet
Among the blazes fanned by this weekend’s weather is the Riley Creek wildfire burning south of Lillooet.
The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District and the Lytton First Nation issued evacuation orders related to the growing fire Friday night, and the district has also expanded its evacuation alert for properties along Highway 12 and Texas Creek Road.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
12:20 p.m. PT: Okanagan evacuation alert
The Regional District of North Okanagan has issued its own evacuation alert for the Bradley Creek wildfire, joining the Okanagan Indian Band in urging residents near the blaze to prepare to leave at a moment’s notice.
More than a dozen addressed properties along Six Mile Creek Road are covered by the regional district’s alert.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
11:05 a.m. PT: ‘Upwards of 10 to 15 kilometres over the day’
The Big Bar Complex of fires, led by the Pear Lake wildfire, was already displaying aggressive fire behaviour in the drought-stricken Cariboo region.
In an operational update video published Saturday morning, B.C. Wildfire Service fire behaviour analyst Neal McLoughlin said the incoming cold front is a “significant weather pattern” that could make the already challenging blaze even more so.
“Over the last couple days, we’ve been seeing anywhere from one to five kilometres of growth per day on our fire complex,” McLoughlin said. “With this cold front passage, we can expect upwards of 10 to 15 kilometres over the day.”
McLoughlin said crews expect “very aggressive fire behaviour” and will be focused on protecting public safety and key infrastructure on Saturday, rather than on aggressive suppression of the fire.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
10:30 a.m. PT: Spuzzum First Nation evacuation order
All Spuzzum First Nation Reserve lands have been ordered evacuated due to the Brunswick Complex fires.
The nation’s evacuation order follows similar expanded orders from the Fraser Valley Regional District in the area between Boston Bar and Yale Saturday morning.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
9:40 a.m. PT: New fire in the Okanagan
A new wildfire that sparked Friday night near the north end of Okanagan Lake has prompted an evacuation alert from the Okanagan Indian Band.
Dubbed the Bradley Creek Wildfire, the blaze was measured at 200 hectares as of Saturday morning, according to the B.C. Wildfire Service.
“Fire growth and size for this incident is predominantely attributed to the grassy fuel type, which burns fast and makes for a quicker rate of spread,” the service said in its morning update.
“BCWS is assisting the Okanagan Indian Band Fire Department with this incident.”
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
9:15 a.m. PT: New evacuations for Brunswick Complex
The Brunswick Creek wildfire has been burning for nearly a month now, but it and its neighbour the Ainslie Creek wildfire—collectively, the Brunswick Complex—continue to threaten new areas along Highway 1 in the Fraser Canyon.
The Fraser Valley Regional District issued new evacuation orders for dozens of addressed and unaddressed properties in Electoral Areas A and B between Alexandra Lodge and Sawmill Creek, between Boston Bar and Yale.
New evacuation alerts are also in place from Sawmill Creek to Dogwood Valley, near Yale, and the closure of Highway 1 has been extended south. It now begins at Jackass Mountain Summit, according to DriveBC.
Ian Holliday, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
8 a.m. PT: Dangerous weather incoming
A cold front bringing strong winds and thunderstorms, with little to no rain, is expected to sweep over southern B.C. this long weekend, fanning out-of-control wildfires that already threaten several communities.
The BC Wildfire Service says the winds will lead to challenging firefighting conditions, and it’s likely new lightning-caused wildfires will start due to the tinder-dry conditions.
The Canadian Press
