Emergency minister urges B.C. to follow wildfire evacuation instructions

As hundreds of wildfires burn across B.C., the province says it is deploying every available resource to keep people, communities, and homes safe.

In a media availability Friday, Emergency Minister Bowinn Ma says wildfires are currently the top priorities for the province, as B.C. faces increased risks from current weather forecasts and extreme drought.

“I was deeply horrified to witness the distressing images emerging from West Kelowna, late last evening, last night, and into this morning,” Ma said. “I know that this is a very challenging situation for everyone in that area. My heart is with you.”

Ma says the BC Wildfire Service has done “heroic” work to not only keep people safe in the Okanagan but right across the province, adding it’s working closely with the Lytton First Nation to “ensure the safety of their members.”

Ma is urging British Columbians who find themselves under an evacuation order or alert to follow the instructions and make sure “you are doing everything you can to protect your community.”

More than 4,500 people are currently under an evacuation order in B.C., however, this number is increasing frequently as wildfires take off due to weather conditions. Ma notes more than 23,500 people are under an evacuation alert.

“If you are placed under an evacuation order, you must leave the area immediately. Please be prepared. Have an emergency plan and a grab-and-go kit ready for you, your family, and your pets,” she said.

BC Wildfire Service Director of Operations Cliff Chapman echoed Ma’s gratitude towards wildfire fighters, which is “so proud of. They have all been working significantly long hours working through the night pulling people from homes, ensuring that people are going when they get asked under an evacuation order while also trying to manage the edge of some of these fires in extreme fire behavior. They are heroes.”

“I can say from experience I’ve been in BC Wildfire Service my entire career, over 20 years, and there’s only a few dates that stick out for me as dates that will always be engraved in my head. Yesterday is one of those days.”

“We knew the weather was coming. We knew it was going to have a big impact on the fires. And it did and now we’re seeing the catastrophic impact that fires can have as they interface with communities,” Chapman added.

Chapman notes that B.C. saw a province-wide weather event “sweep” through B.C. Thursday, which restarted some wildfires in the north that had been relatively dormant for the past number of weeks.

“That’s how strong the winds were yesterday, as well as how dry the fuels continue to be across this province. As the cold front swept through the northern part of the province, the caribou portion of the province, and finally into Kamloops the southeast and coastal fire centers, we really started to see the impacts of those winds on some of the large fires in the southern part of B.C.”

Chapam explains that flame lengths at the Kookipi Creek fire, in the Fraser Canyon, hit somewhere between 150 and 200 feet tall Thursday. The McDougall Creek wildfire, which is threatening West Kelowna and Kelowna, has grown by more than six times its size from Thursday.

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Chapman says there were a couple of incidents Thursday where RCMP and fire crews has to head back into evacuation zones to try to get people out.

“That puts their lives at risk. … Now is not the time to ignore evacuation. We need you out of your homes. We need you out of the way so that we can focus on trying to protect those homes and trying to steer the fire away from critical infrastructure and property,” he said.

Chapman’s comments come as the West Kelowna Fire Chief shares that crews were trapped overnight Thursday after trying to get private citizens to evacuate.

Minister of Forests Bruce Ralston says that as forecasted, and as officials warned of Thursday, the province is seeing an “extremely challenging fire situation.”

“We remain in the midst of a strong weather pattern that is creating sustained winds and dry lightning. This has significant effects throughout the province,” Ralston said. “We have significant growth of existing fires and some new fires started overnight. With this new activity comes new evacuation alerts in orders. The impact will be felt throughout the weekend, and we undoubtedly will see more fires and more extreme fire behaviour in the coming days.”

Evacuation alerts, orders for fires around B.C. 

Meanwhile, several other large wildfires are burning, and growing around B.C. prompting evacuation alerts and orders around the province.

In the South Okanagan, the Crater Creek wildfire near Keremeos has placed 189 properties on evacuation alert with 19 under an order. The fire is estimated to be burning around 22,000 hectares, according to the BC Wildfire Service.

In the Kamloops Fire Centre, the East Adams Lake wildfire, burning at over 10,000 hectares, has led to expanded evacuation alerts and orders for properties along Adams Lake, north of Chase, B.C.

Closer to Metro Vancouver, there are several fires raging in the Fraser Canyon. Highway 1 from Hope to Lytton is closed due to the Kookipi Creek wildfire, burning at over 8,700 hectares as of Friday. That, along with the smaller Stein Mountain Wildfire 15 km north of Lytton has prompted the evacuation of several communities, with Lytton itself on evacuation alert.

Further north, the Casper Creek wildfire is burning at over 6,500 hectares west of Lillooet. It’s prompted evacuation orders and alerts for some properties in the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District.

These are in addition to a swathe of evacuations and alerts in and around Kelowna due to the McDougall Creek wildfire.

As of Friday afternoon, the BC Wildfire Service had 380 active wildfires listed. Of those, 16 are out-of-control blazes considered “of note.”

Wherever you are in the province be sure to listen to local emergency officials for the latest on evacuations and new fire starts.

With files from Cole Schisler