Wildfire north of West Kelowna quickly held

KELOWNA (NEWS 1130) – A small wildfire that popped up Tuesday in the Okanagan about three kilometres north of West Kelowna is already being held.

The BC Wildfire Service says the blaze, adjacent to Westside Road, in the Rose Valley lake area, remains about three hectares in size, with no signs it will spread farther.

“We responded with three personnel as well as helicopters and air tankers,” explained fire information officer Shaelee Stearns.

“They had a good response to that fire and were able to move it today, and we’ll continue to patrol it as well.”

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According to the province’s wildfire dashboard, the fire is suspected to be human-caused.

Images shared to social media Tuesday showed thick smoke coming from the fire. Stearns understands why there may have been a lot of concern around the blaze.

“It definitely was putting up a lot of smoke, but with it being held, it means that we’re on the way to having that fire under control and putting in enough suppression efforts for that fire. There might still be some smoke just from some fuels that are burned within the area today, but they are making good progress on it,” she explained.

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Conditions have been challenging in the Okanagan, where the landscape has been dry and weather has been hot. Stearns says the service was able to get crews to the fire quickly, adding to the progress.

“It always depends on the type of fuel in the area, a lot of fuels can impact how the fires spread and the kind of behaviour that we’re seeing, for sure,” she told NEWS 1130.

The fire near West Kelowna did prompt some evacuation orders in the vicinity of Bear Creek Road. However, they have since been lifted.

There are currently 250 fires burning across B.C.