‘Suspicious’ B.C. wildfire being probed
LAKE COUNTRY, B.C. • Mounties in Lake Country, B.C., say they are continuing to investigate a “suspicious” fire that destroyed eight homes and have set up a dedicated tip line to encourage anyone with information to contact police.
The fast-spreading fire broke out Saturday and forced people to flee their homes, but residents of 58 properties were allowed to return earlier this week.
Cpl. Dan Moskaluk said resources from Lake Country, Kelowna and the South East District area have been pooled to conduct an indepth investigation and fully determine the cause of the fire.
“At this time we are treating this fire as suspicious and believe it to be humancaused,” he said in a statement. “As is the case with many investigations, it is information from the public that solves them.”
The province’s state of emergency will continue for another two weeks and on Friday firefighters were responding to 18 active wildfires in southeast B.C.
Seven of the fires were sparked Thursday and the B.C. Wildfire Service said some of the blazes are visible from surrounding towns, but none is immediately threatening communities or homes.
The fires include a 70-hectare blaze burning in the Purcell Wilderness Conservancy Provincial Park on the northeast side of Kootenay Lake.
There has been violent fire activity for weeks in the southern and central Interior and dozens of homes have been lost, but the southeast part of B.C. has not been as badly affected.
With hot and dry conditions forecast through next week and the potential for more thunderstorms on Friday in the region, the wildfire service is urging the public to be extra cautious.
It has been two weeks since raging fires forced mass evacuations and prompted the province to declare a state of emergency.
On Wednesday, Premier John Horgan said he would extend the order for an additional two weeks since many of the 43,000 people who had to flee their homes in the province’s Interior will not yet be able to return.
Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said members of a federal ad hoc committee co-ordinating Ottawa’s response to the fires are expected to be meeting with provincial officials this weekend. The federal government said committee members will also be visiting affected communities to determine what help is needed in addition to current support from departments and agencies including the Canadian Forces, Public Health Agency, RCMP and Canada Post.
Williams Lake, which was evacuated nearly a week ago, was among the areas of the province to see rain on Thursday, but more than 150 fires are still active and air quality advisories resulting from the smoke remain in effect.
The Cariboo Regional District said officials from the district, Williams Lake, 100 Mile House and First Nations are combining their efforts to work toward a safe return for residents currently out of their homes.
The district said 100 Mile House is the community closest to having priority services in place, including emergency health care, 911 service, power, food services, waste management services and security. It said preparations for Williams Lake are not far behind.