No rain in sight for much of B.C. as hot, dry conditions persist

While you might be enjoying the sun and warm weather, the dry and hot conditions are complicating things for wildfire-fighting crews in B.C.

According to CityNews meteorologist Michael Kuss, little to no rain is forecasted for much of the province in the coming weeks.

“We’re now halfway through the month, and we haven’t had a drop of rain in the Lower Mainland and not much to speak of around most of the province, and really, there’s not a lot in sight,” Kuss said Tuesday.

“The pattern remains stagnant, consistent. It’s warm, with extreme heat in the Interior. But across all of southern and central B.C., aside from isolated thunderstorms, it’s going to be dry for at least the next seven to 10 days.”

Kuss explains that for much of the Lower Mainland and South Coast, the weather hasn’t been much warmer than seasonal, which we’ll see again as we head into the weekend.

“But it’s how dry it has been. Extreme heat is in the Interior of the province and across the western Prairies, and that’s going to be the case for seven to 10 days out, with temperatures soaring into the 30s, potentially mid-30s for that part of the country. Across the South Coast, it’s dry. It’s already been 16 days without precipitation and none in sight,” Kuss said.

With the dry conditions and persistent drought, things aren’t getting any better as B.C. goes weeks without rain.

“The fire danger rating across most of the province, with the exception of the extreme northwest, is in the high to extreme range right now, and it’s not going to improve,” Kuss explained.

“It will be high to extreme at least over the next seven to 10 days, with no precipitation in sight, and potentially in the Interior, lightning strikes are a possibility with some instability.”

60 international wildfire-fighters coming to B.C. in coming days

Meanwhile, the BC Wildfire Service says international help is on the way to help battle blazes that it expects to flare this week.

It says on social media that 60 firefighting personnel are expected to arrive in the province from Australia and New Zealand, with two 15-person incident management teams touching down on Friday.

The wildfire service says 30 more firefighting staff will arrive on Sunday and will fill specialized roles such as helicopter coordination and fire behaviour analysis.

It says the added resources will give provincial firefighters a break and provide added manpower as hot and dry weather is forecast to continue.

The wildfire service says out-of-province support has already arrived in the form of a 20-person crew from Nova Scotia, as well as two firefighting aircraft from Ontario that will be stationed in Williams Lake.

The announcements come after the District of Wells lifted an evacuation order for an area around Cornish Lake and Nine and Eight Mile lakes that was issued because of the Cornish Mountain Fire on July 10.

The Cariboo Regional District has also lifted an evacuation alert for the nearby tourist town of Barkerville because of the same wildfire.

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