Keremeos wildfire now 3 km from U.S. border
Posted August 6, 2018 10:52 am.
Last Updated August 6, 2018 10:54 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
KEREMEOS (NEWS 1130) – The large wildfire south of Keremeos has expanded once again and that uncontained fire is now also approaching the U.S. border.
The fire has grown to 120 square kilometres, and is now just three kilometres from the U.S. border.
“We’re working together with the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources as well as out own crews, just given the fire’s proximity to the border,” says Kyla Fraser with the B.C. Wildfire Service.
“In the last few days there’s been quite a bit of wind activity in that fire which did cause an increase… but there’s been no growth overnight.”
There was a drop in the lightning activity, according to Fraser, but after days without additional lightning starts the weather is forecast to be hot and dry.
“We’re expecting that to both increase the fire danger rating and affect some of the fires we have burning right now.
Meanwhile new evacuation orders have been issued for several northern parts of the province, including areas around Telegraph Creek, Elbow Lake and the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako.
“The evacuation orders are relatively small numbers,” says Bill Miller with the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako, noting those outright orders to leave are in the single digits. “We come in as needed, but all the preparatory work has been done.”
Miller says at this point no Emergency Operations Centre has been set up but if the situation worsens the regional district will adjust.
As it stands there are a few dozen properties under evacuation alert but the hope is that number will drop as crews get a better handle of the situation.
For a full list of evacuation orders and alerts in B.C., click here.