Small wildfire burns under century-old B.C. rail trestle

VANCOUVER Crews are battling a stubborn fire that is burning under a century-old railway trestle bridge near Hope, B.C.

Jeanne Larsen of the B.C. Wildfire Service says the fire began Sunday and has charred less than a hectare of bush near the Ladner Creek trestle, a metal span that was part of the decommissioned Kettle Valley Railway.

She says the thickly timbered, steep walls of the creek canyon are preventing a three-person crew from easily battling the flames.

The wildfire service lists the fire as suspected to be human caused on its website.

Although the trestle is still standing, a witness who could not be reached for comment said in a Facebook post on Sunday that the crumbling wooden ties on the old bridge deck had burned.

Larsen could not confirm that the ties were destroyed, but she says embers from them continue to spark fires that are difficult to reach in areas around the bridge.

“Just little pieces of falling, burning debris are landing on the ground and igniting little spot fires, and that’s what they ’re dealing with,” she said.

Cooler weather has eased wildfire conditions across B.C. The wildfire service says progress had been made on several major fires, including the Allie Lake fire northwest of Kamloops.

Cache Creek has prohibited all campfires because of the fire risk, although propane or briquette fires are allowed.

The entire village was evacuated for 11 days last summer because of wildfires that prompted the province to call a state of emergency.

The fires charred nearly 2,000 square kilometres of timber and destroyed 211 homes or properties before they were declared to be out in early October.