The province of B.C. is seeking outside help as dozens of new wildfires have started in B.C.’s Interior and north, putting hundreds of residents on alert for potential evacuations.
B.C. Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma says B.C. is seeking out-of-province help from six unit crews representing 180 specialized wildfire fighters, plus management teams to help deal with what she calls the “potential for a drastically accelerated wildfire situation.”
Dozens of new wildfires have broken out in recent days, with a total of 150 burning as of Thursday afternoon.
The majority are in the Prince George and Cariboo fire districts, covering central and northeastern B.C.. where the B.C. Wildfire Service’s map shows a cluster of about two dozen new fires sparked in the Cariboo region west of Quesnel.
Among them, a new wildfire that triggered an evacuation order late Wednesday for the northeast corner of the District of Wells in the Cariboo region about 116 kilometres southeast of Prince George and a pair of fires burning in an ancient inland rainforest park about 100 kilometres east of the same city.
Ma says about 500 of the province’s full complement of 2,000 firefighters are currently deployed, but the province is seeking help early so there isn’t any lag in firefighting ability as the situation worsens due to a heat wave and ongoing dry conditions.
The government of Nova Scotia has already said it is sending 20 firefighters to the Prince George region to support wildfire fighting in the region, with an expected deployment on Friday.
Hundreds on evacuation alert
In the District of Wells, officials say the Cornish Mountain wildfire is a threat to life and safety, and residents affected by the order must leave immediately.
The order includes the Eight-Mile Lake and Nine-Mile Lake areas, Cornish Lake and Mine Sites.
An evacuation alert remains in effect for the rest of the district.
The Cornish Mountain fire was discovered Wednesday and is currently burning 70 hectares of woodland. Early indications suggest it was sparked by lightning.
Officials said in a news conference Thursday morning that crews, helicopters and air tankers have been fighting the fire since last night.
The fire is still out of control but is being held and isn’t currently moving toward the community, said Wells Mayor Ed Coleman.
The evacuation order covers a small mine site of about 10 employees, as well as backcountry recreation lakes, according to the mayor.
The evacuation alert affects about 350 properties, including homes, businesses and Crown lots, he said.
About 218 residents live in the area, and there are about 250 visitors.
Rainforest wildfire closes inland park
Also east of Prince George, wildfires have closed the Ancient Forest/Chun T’oh Whudujut Park, a provincial park housing ancient cedar rainforest.
The B.C. Wildfire map shows two wildfires burning within park boundaries, with a third just outside its southern border.
All three are less than one square kilometre.
B.C. Parks says the decision to close the area was made in the interest of public safety.
Further north, more than 300 properties have been placed under an evacuation alert near Dawson Creek, B.C., after the Tupper Creek wildfire was discovered Tuesday.
In northeastern B.C., the Fort Nelson First Nation issued an evacuation order Tuesday for its Kahntah reserve, telling residents they had to leave by boat due to the threat of an out-of-control blaze discovered the day before.
Parts of B.C. also continue to experience a prolonged heat wave, with heat warnings still in effect in the southern Interior. The weather is expected to cool in that region after Thursday.
Environment Canada said 17 daily heat records were set or tied in the province Wednesday. At 40.5 C, the village of Warfield in the West Kootenay region was the hottest place in Canada on Wednesday.
A B.C.-wide campfire ban is going into place at noon Friday to try to reduce wildfire risk. The sole exception to the ban is in the Haida Gwaii Forest District.
