Wildfire evacuation orders for 2 Northern B.C. communities

The Cariboo Regional District has issued two emergency alerts due to wildfire risks in the Townsend Creek and Branch Road area.

The first alert issued Saturday evening is for eight parcels covering about 25 square kilometres due to the Townsend Creek wildfire.

The blaze was discovered Saturday afternoon and is believed to have been sparked by lightning. It is listed as burning out-of-control and currently covers 1.1 square kilometres about 2.5 kilometres east of Margaret Lake.

The district also issued an evacuation alert for 27 parcels in the Branch Road Area, covering more than 193 square kilometres.

The BC Wildfire Service says the Branch Road wildfire discovered Friday night is burning out of control and covers nearly a kilometre. The service says a helicopter, three pieces of heavy equipment including a bulldozer, excavator and water tender and other resources are responding to the blaze.

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Residents are being told to be prepared to leave with little to no notice.

Earlier in the day, Recreation Sites and Trails BC and the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako issued an evacuation order for the Kager Lake campsite and Trails and Boer Mountain trail system due to the danger posed by the Tintagel wildfire.

That fire is also burning out of control, covering 2.5 square kilometres and continuing to spread.

Late Saturday night, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure closed a 12-kilometre stretch of the Highway 27 corridor between Blue Mountain Road and Kenner Road as a precautionary measure after the Tsah Creek wildfire breached control lines.