Heat warning challenges firefighters
Fresh evacuation orders were issued late Monday for eight properties in the path of the resurgent Thomas Creek wildfire amid a new heat warning from Environment Canada.
The newly evacuated properties lie on both sides of Shuttleworth Creek Road approximately 15 kilometres northeast of Okanagan Falls. Most are recreational properties, including the Allendale Lake campground.
Another 724 properties are under evacuation alert due to the fire, which was pegged at 7,300 hectares as of Tuesday morning.
“Fire behaviour increased significantly in the last few days, particularly in the north and northeast sections of the fire. This caused the fire to continue to grow towards the height of land between the Okanagan and the west part of the Kettle River drainage,” the BC Wildfire Service said in an update on its website.
“Crews and equipment will continue to work to the north and east of the fire to create and reinforce guard lines using existing roads, old fire guards and other natural features. This is being done in an effort to get ahead of the fire in the north and northeast sections.”
Okanagan Falls lies on the fire’s west flank, where crews have demobilized some equipment due to “quiet fire behaviour and decreased risk in this area.”
Further south, the Nk’Mip Creek fire near Osoyoos was still listed Tuesday at 6,800 hectares, unchanged from last Friday because heavy smoke has made it difficult for the BCWS to get a clear look at its boundaries.
Fire activity was “moderate” on Monday “with mostly surface fire and some trees torching. The fire was still active but not as challenging as previous days,” the BCWS said in an update on its website.
Crews and equipment remain stationed in the Anarchist Mountain and Shrike Hill areas, where one home and one camper have been confirmed lost to flames.
Approximately 1,500 properties remain under an evacuation order or alert, even though the Town of Osoyoos planned at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday to drop an alert for 200 properties lying north of Highway 3 between Cottonwood Drive and 45th Street.
Meanwhile, the Garrison Lake fire burning approximately 30 kilometres south of Princeton near Eastgate in Manning Park doubled in size Tuesday to 2,400 hectares as it grew to the west and southwest.
There are 202 properties under an evacuation alert and another 15 under evacuation order.
Finally, the Brenda Creek wildfire near Highway 97 C approximately 40 kilometres west of West Kelowna held steady Tuesday at 824 hectares.
Encouraged by what it’s seeing there, the BCWS earlier this week pulled out structural protection equipment that was placed near a BC Hydro line that supplies power to Peachland, West Kelowna and other rural areas.
Structural protection equipment remains in place in the Headwaters area, where 43 properties are under an evacuation order and another two are under alert.
The BCWS expects hot, windy weather through the rest of the week to “challenge” its suppression efforts.
The forecast is serious enough that Environment Canada on Tuesday issued a special weather statement regarding a “strengthening ridge of high pressure” over the Southern Interior that will send daytime temperatures into the high 30s.
“The time frame with the hottest weather will be from Wednesday to Saturday,” adds the statement.
“The highest temperatures are expected to be in Fraser Canyon, Thompson-Okanagan, and the southern Kootenays. Heat warnings may be issued for some regions as the event draws closer.”