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The latest:
- The Parker Lake wildfire near Fort Nelson, B.C., has grown in size to nearly 41 square kilometres on Sunday evening.
- Officials are warning that winds are likely to push the fire toward Fort Nelson on Sunday and Monday.
- Residents who have not yet evacuated have been told there will be no help available after noon Sunday.
- Those who cannot drive are urged to call 250-775-0933 for support. For emergencies, dial 911.
- How to find the full list of wildfires, highway closures and evacuation orders and alerts.
Officials say the Parker Lake wildfire may hit the town of Fort Nelson in northeastern British Columbia on Monday morning, after it more than doubled in size on Sunday.
Fire behaviour specialist Ben Boghean of the B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) said in a Sunday evening update that the blaze was threatening structures along the Alaska Highway west of Fort Nelson as of 3 p.m. PT Sunday.
He said winds are anticipated to increase Sunday evening and will remain elevated on Monday, with gusts up to 20 km/h.
The fire is forecast to move west and southwest throughout Monday, moving along Highway 97 and toward the Fort Nelson First Nation and Muskwa area, and is estimated to impact the area at 6 p.m.
As of Sunday afternoon, the blaze was burning 2.5 kilometres west of the town, according to the BCWS.
The wildfire, which officials say was sparked by a downed tree on Friday evening, has resulted in an evacuation order being issued for the entire community of about 3,400 people, as well as the nearby Fort Nelson First Nation in B.C.’s northeast.
According to the BCWS, the fire grew from 17 square kilometres in size on Saturday to about 41 square kilometres as of Sunday afternoon.
The First Nation has issued an expanded evacuation order covering one home and “many cultural sites” on Sunday.
Rob Fraser, mayor of the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality (NRRM), told The Canadian Press on Sunday that there are about 37 households in Fort Nelson and another 28 in the surrounding rural area that have not heeded an order to evacuate, totalling between 100 and 150 people.
The municipality is urging anyone still in Fort Nelson to leave, and warned its emergency operations centre would be relocating south of town, further limiting its ability to communicate with residents.
The final buses out of the community, it said, would be leaving from the Woodlands Inn at noon local time on Sunday, at which point no further help would be available.
The CBC’s Yvette Brend spoke to evacuees in Fort St. John, after they drove six hours in smoky conditions to escape the raging wildfires in northeastern B.C.
In a joint statement on Saturday, NRRM and Fort Nelson First Nation said people staying behind despite the evacuation orders should be aware that “emergency medical services are not available, nor are groceries or other amenities.”
Fort Nelson is located near B.C.’s border with Yukon, about 1,600 kilometres northeast of Vancouver and 500 kilometres north of Prince George.
A rapidly-advancing wildfire has forced residents of the entire community of Fort Nelson and Fort Nelson First Nation to evacuate. Smoke from the flames could be seen earlier in the day.
Evacuees told to head south
Those fleeing the fire had to drive for nearly six hours south to Fort St. John — about 380 kilometres southeast of Fort Nelson.
Officials are urging anyone with the means to travel further to go another 440 kilometres south to Prince George, B.C., where a reception centre has been opened.
Those needing transportation are advised to call 250-775-0933, and the district says evacuees should register on the Evacuee Registration and Assistance website at ess.gov.bc.ca.
Rena Moore is one of the few people who stayed behind in Fort Nelson on Sunday, as her husband’s hotel is housing dozens of wildfire fighters responding to the blaze.
“If some of us weren’t here to help, feeding them … they’re not going to be able to fight for our community,” she told CBC News.
When the fire broke out, Moore was with her family to the northwest of it at Liard Hot Springs. She captured video of the blaze burning the forest along the highway on her way back to Fort Nelson.
Flames burned along the highway near the community in northeast B.C. as residents were told to evacuate on Friday night.
“You try to stay indoors just so that it’s not affecting your breathing and stuff,” she said on Sunday. “But … you see the haze through the trees. You hear the helicopters, and you see the planes flying.”
Moore said she hoped nobody would ever have to go through a wildfire evacuation as her community did — but she praised many northeast B.C. communities, like Fort St. John, Dawson Creek and Chetwynd, for housing evacuees and being open amid a time of crisis.
Increased fire activity forecast
The B.C. Wildfire Service says reduced wind speeds and cooler temperatures on Saturday helped crews, but temperatures are expected to remain above seasonal norms on Sunday.
The Northern Rockies Regional Municipality issued an update warning that the wind “has the real potential to significantly increase the size of the fires over the next 48 hours.”
With the Parker Lake fire directly to the west of the community, Fraser, the NRRM’s mayor, said there’s little crews can do if strong westerly winds develop as forecast.
“Just pray that the winds don’t come from the west,” he said. “Maybe they go northwest, which will help to blow it south of the community, and that would really help us.
“But we’re as ready as we can be with the assistance from the province to make a last stand.”