BC Wildfire Service warns residents to ‘stay vigilant’ amid favourable weather

The BC Wildfire Service says cooler, wetter conditions over the long weekend allowed crews to make progress fighting big fires in the Fort Nelson area, but the danger remains.

The Patry Creek and Parker Lake wildfires continue to burn out of control around the northeastern B.C. community, keeping 4,700 people out of their homes for more than a week now.

Sarah Budd, an information officer with the BC Wildfire service, told CityNews the weekend weather was “extremely helpful” to crews.

“I know folks maybe didn’t enjoy the cooler, wetter weather this long weekend, but it has allowed some of our crews to make progress, particularly in the northeast where they’re fighting those fires,” said Budd.

In an update Sunday night, North Peace Complex incident commander Bryce Moreira said crews have enjoyed cooler weather the last few days and expect that to continue in the short-term.

“While we don’t expect that to have a significant impact on fire behaviour, it does give us a chance to understand where there are potentially more areas of heat and focus our resources there,” he said

The favourable weather is expected to last until Wednesday, but Budd says the BC Wildfire Service still encourages vigilance.

She says warm and windy weather will return eventually, adding that much of the province remains “unseasonably dry” due to ongoing drought conditions.

Budd says that although statistics show that fewer fires have started from campfires in recent years, the danger remains for any fire activity in the area.

“The underlying forest fuels are still really susceptible to ignition.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, the Parker Lake fire is reportedly 12,350 hectares in size. It is suspected the fire was human caused.

The Patry Creek fire — which is a holdover fire — was an estimated 71,792 hectares as of Monday morning. This fire is believed to have been sparked by lightning.

On Sunday, the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality (NRRM) confirmed to CityNews that a total of four homes had been destroyed by the wildfires in Fort Nelson.

—With files from Hana Mae Nassar and The Canadian Press