Evacuation alert now dropped in OK Falls
An evacuation alert was rescinded Wednesday for 704 properties near Okanagan Falls, while a separate evacuation order was lifted for 223 properties east of Osoyoos, as the fires that triggered the warnings continued moving away from the communities.
The 704 properties south of Heritage Hills down along the northeast flank of Okanagan Falls had been under alert since July 11 as a result of the Thomas Creek wildfire
That fire was still pegged at 10,300 hectares as of Wednesday, although it had jumped a guard in the Derenzy drainage area on the north flank.
“Bucketing helicopters responded to keep the escape minimal and (on Wednesday) crews are working to tie the escape in and will use contingency guards from the 2020 fire to limit spread towards Christie Mountain,” the BCWS stated in an update.
The fire also jumped a containment line on the southeast corner and similar work was underway to corral the flames there.
There were 41 firefighters, 38 Canadian soldiers, three helicopters and 23 pieces of heavy equipment at the scene.
Ten properties in the back country remain under an evacuation order.
Meanwhile, the evacuation order for 223 properties on Anarchist Mountain east of Osoyoos that were in the path of the Nk’Mip Creek wildfire was downgraded to an alert late Tuesday.
A separate evacuation order for the Area 27 racetrack and some properties on Nk’Mip Road and Spud Allen Road was also replaced with an alert.
That still leaves a total of 1,341 properties under alert and another 339 under evacuation order as the fire remains out of control at an estimated size of 16,000 hectares.
The BC Wildfire Service said the fire grew Tuesday night on the northwest corner in the Wolfcub area where it managed to jump a guard.
“Crews will work (Wednesday) to control the escape and establish containment using hand ignition where possible,” the BCWS stated in an update on its website.
The agency is trying to contain the fire to Nk’Mip Road on the west flank, Mount Baldy and Sidley Meadow on the east side, Highway 3 to the south and Camp McKinney to the north.
There were 155 wildland firefighters on the ground Wednesday being helped by 37 Canadian soldiers and 46 other firefighters doing structure protection. Six helicopters and 19 pieces of heavy equipment were also on scene.
So far, just one home in the Shrike Hill area has been confirmed lost to the fire, which flared to life July 19 in the hills east of Highway 97 about halfway between Oliver and Osoyoos.
And over in the Similkameen, the Garrison Creek wildfire in Manning Park was bumped up by 200 hectares to 8,400 as of Wednesday afternoon as flames moved south even deeper into the park.
An evacuation order is in effect for 158 properties and two more properties are under alert.
The BCWS had 18 personnel at the scene Wednesday along with 20 pieces of heavy equipment and structure protection crews.