The B.C. Wildfire Service says thundershowers are expected to bring some much-needed moisture to areas of the province where hundreds of fires are burning, including a destructive blaze in the Kootenays.
It says in an update that the moisture will likely arrive in the Rocky Mountain Trench in the northeast, as well as the Southeast Fire Centre.
There were about 415 fires burning in British Columbia on Wednesday, down slightly from the day before, with 163 out of control and four classified as wildfires of note, meaning they are highly visible or pose a threat to people or property.
About 110 fires are burning in the Southeast Fire Centre, including the Komonko Creek blaze that the Regional District of Central Kootenay said on Monday had destroyed or damaged at least five homes and 13 other structures along Highway 6.
That fire is part of the Slocan fire complex that has also destroyed or damaged five other cabins and outbuildings on the west side of Slocan Lake.
In the Prince George Fire Centre in B.C.’s northeast, about 170 fires are burning.
The wildfire service says there have been 256 new starts across B.C. in the last seven days, with about 82 per cent believed to have been caused by lightning.