Wildfire evacuation orders expanded in B.C.'s southern Interior

Two out-of-control wildfires inBritishColumbia'ssouthern Interior have forced officials to issue evacuation orders for people at almost 100 properties.

The Thompson-Nicola Regional District issuedevacuation orders Sundayfor residents and owners of 88properties in a remote area north of Lytton, including recreational cabins at Turnip Lake, due to the continued growth of the Shetland Creek wildfire.

The regional district said in a statement Sunday the evacuation order was issued "due to immediate danger to life safety caused by the Shetland Creek Wildfire."

According to Kevin Skrepnek, manager of Community and Emergency Services for the regional district, the Shetland Creek fire has been steadily growing toward Lyttonand some of the areas around the B.C. village, which weredestroyed by fire in the June 2021 wildfire.

Additionally, about 50 properties in the Botanie Valley area, north of the Village of Lyttonis currently under an evacuation order, said Skrepnek.

"We wanted folks there to have as much notice as possible in case we did need to move to an evacuation order based on what the fire is doing," he told CBC News.

Weather forecasts don't provide much relief either,Skrepnek says, withrising temperatures, increasingwindspeeds and drylightningforecasted for southern B.C. for the next few days.

"That's going to be a concern both for the Shetland Creek Fire and forfires across the region, and of course potential for new fires to start with that lightning."

The B.C. Wildfire Service said it is preparing for increased lightning activity across much of the province's Cariboo, Okanagan and southeast regions followed by cooler temperatures and high winds on Monday.

Evacuation order issuedforPrinceton-area properties

The Okanagan-Similkameen Regional District issued an evacuation order late Saturday for 16 properties in a rural area south ofPrinceton,B.C., because of the out-of-control Calcite Creek wildfire.

The properties are located near Highway 3 along the Pasayten Forest Service Road, about 40 kilometres south ofPrinceton, while evacuation alerts were issued for people at nearby properties at Eastgate and Placer Creek.

With constantly changing conditions, the regional district's information officer is urging residents to sign up forVoyent Alert,a free emergency notification system that delivers subscribers emergency notifications during critical events like fire.

WATCH | Aerial video shows scale of Shetland Creek wildfire in B.C.:

Aerial video shows scale of Shetland Creek wildfire in B.C.

1 month ago

Duration 3:11

Handout footage from the B.C. Wildfire Service shows smoke and flames from the huge Shetland Creek wildfire in B.C.'s southern Interior from the week of July 22, 2024.

"Then if anything changes, especially if it's on short notice, they'll be notified right away," he told CBC News. "Of course the other thing you can do is monitor local website and and even local media as well."

The province's wildfire service reports eight fires of note inB.C.'s southern regions, including the Dogtooth wildfire south of Golden, which has destroyed 15 structures; the Dunn Creek wildfire located about 100 kilometres north ofKamloops; and the Sitkum Creek wildfire northeast of Vernon.

A wildfire of note is described as highly visible with the potential to pose a threat to public safety.

A wildfire four kilometres south of the Canada-U.S. border at Oroville, Wash., started Saturday and is currently visible from nearbyOsoyoos,B.C.

Officials said there are 333 active fires acrossB.C., but preparations are underway for more lightning-triggered blazes over the coming days.