Raging wildfire jumps Okanagan Lake to Kelowna, multiple state of emergencies in place

The McDougall Fire burning near West Kelowna has crossed the Okanagan Lake to Kelowna proper.

Read more:

• Over 750 more West Kelowna properties ordered to evacuate amid wildfire threat

• Wildfire near West Kelowna could put critical infrastructure at risk: MP

The out-of-control wildfire is estimated to be burning at 6,800 hectares in size, and has prompted evacuation orders and alerts on the west side of the lake. A local state of emergency is in place for Kelowna and the Westbank First Nation. On Friday morning, a local state of emergency was declared for Lake Country.

Data from the BC Wildfire Service shows two new fires in Kelowna — one that was discovered at 9:55 p.m., and another that was discovered at 10:46 p.m. Thursday.

In response, Central Okanagan Emergency Operations issued evacuation orders for properties in the Clifton Road North and McKinley neighbourhoods. As of 1:40 a.m. Friday, properties in the Still Pond area of North Kelowna were placed under an evacuation order, including those surrounding Hidden Lake.

Multiple evacuation alerts have also been issued nearby as the fire moves north to Lake Country.

An emergency response centre has been established in the North Clifton area and Prospera Place.

Meanwhile, the City of Vernon has set up an emergency response centre in the Kal Tire Place Arena to assist evacuees from Kelowna and East Kelowna.

The City of Armstrong, located approximately 23 km north of Vernon, has no current plans in place to deal with any evacuees.

“We haven’t been contacted by either the province or another EOC [Emergency Operations Centre] with respect to a reception centre,” Armstrong’s Chief Administrative Officer Dawn Low told CityNews, but she says they are “monitoring the situation” and are in contact with other operation centres in the region.

Evacuation orders continue to be expanded as the fire moves north. Evacuation orders further north on the west side of Okanagan Lake are now in place for properties north of Nahun to, but not including, La Casa.

“Due to unpredictable fire behaviour, it is critical that all residents evacuate for their safety and the safety of first responders in the area,” reads an excerpt from the evacuation notice.

Since the fire began, the Regional District of Central Okanagan has ordered the evacuation of close to a thousand homes — which translates to approximately 2,500 people. Thousands of other properties in West Kelowna have been placed on evacuation alert as well, keeping them ready to evacuate if the situation worsens.

On Thursday night, West Kelowna Fire Chief Jason Brolund said he expected the fire to continue growing overnight.

-With files from The Canadian Press and Emma Crawford