Photo of the planned ignition west of Red Lake (Image Credit: BC Wildfire Service)

By James Peters

Sparks Lake Wildfire

Sparks Lake wildfire more active Saturday; perimeter guard could be complete in coming days

Jul 10, 2021 | 9:38 PM

KAMLOOPS — The massive Sparks Lake wildfire northwest of Kamloops has surpassed the 40,000-hectare mark and B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) officials said fire activity picked up Saturday (July 10).

BCWS says the fire size has been updated to 40,267 hectares thanks to better GPS tracking.

The more active behaviour of the fire Saturday was due to a change in atmospheric conditions.

Crews completed a 200-hectare planned ignition to remove fuel in the area west of Red Lake, and say it was successful, with no flames spotted outside the guard.

BCWS hopes to have guards around the entire outer perimeter of the fire in the coming days.

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A fire guard around the Sparks Lake wildfire on Skeetchestn land (Image Credit: BC Wildfire Service)

The effort to contain the Sparks Lake fire is immense. There are 234 people working on the fire, including 145 firefighters, supported by 57 pieces of heavy equipment and 10 helicopters.

The Thompson-Nicola Regional District has evacuated 170 properties in response to the fire, and has placed another 704 properties on evacuation alert.

FIRE PERIMETER: