KAMLOOPS — Widespread fire activity is continuing to challenge wildfire crews across BC.
BC Wildfire Service spokesperson Kyla Fraser says there are currently 462 fires burning now – including 25 fires of note.
She says fire activity in the Northwest Fire Centre remains the area of greatest concern.
“Especially that Alkali Lake fire and the South Stikine River fire, they’re burning quite close together, about 15 kilometres apart. And the Alkali Lake fire forced the evacuation of the town of Telegraph Creek. So, as of today, the Alkali Lake fire is 9,000 hectares in size and the South Stikine River fire is at 19,000 hectares in size.”
Combined, those fires have destroyed over two dozen structures.
Despite that, Fraser says crews are making progress on the biggest fire in the Kamloops Fire Centre – the 12000 hectare Snowy Mountain fire just south of Keremeos – which is now 40 per cent contained.
Chief Fire Information Officer Kevin Skrepnek says there are nearly 2,800 people working on the fires as we speak, including firefighters, support staff, over 1,200 contractors and more than 100 out-of-province wildfire personnel.
The fires have prompted 22 evacuation alerts and 17 evacuation orders.
Since April 1, he says there have been 1,502 fires that have burned over 101,000 hectares of forest.
To date, fighting fires in B.C. have cost the Province $131 million.
Looking ahead, Skrepnek says the hot and dry conditions will last until Friday when an unstable weather system is expected to move in and possibly bring with it more thunderstorms and lightning to areas around the province.
.
