B.C. lifts travel restrictions to West Kelowna with fires in Central Okanagan and Lake Country being held
Some evacuation orders lifted in both municipalities, no timeline yet for Shuswap residents
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The latest on the wildfires:
- More evacuation orders were lifted in Lake Country on Thursday after others in the area and in West Kelowna were downgraded to evacuation alerts on Wednesday.
- Visitors can once again travel to West Kelowna as British Columbia ends travel restrictions effective at midnight on Thursday.
- The Clifton/McKinley fire in Kelowna and the Clark Creek wildfire in the Lake Country area north of the city are now classified as being held.
- Kelowna's fire chief said he hopes to have evacuation orders in the city related to the Clifton/McKinley fire downgraded to alerts by the end of Thursday.
- Weather has been favourable to firefighting efforts, but temperatures are expected to rise toward the weekend.
- Officials say there is no timeline in place yet for when 11,000 people in the Shuswap area can return home following the devastating Bush Creek East wildfire.
- An online portal has been set up for evacuees in the Kelowna area to assess if their property has been damaged.
- Learn more about how to find the full list of wildfires, highway closures and evacuation orders and alerts.
Fire officials in the Okanagan say more residents will be able to go home but continue to call for patience as crews work to ensure areas are safe to return to.
Brad Litke with the B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) said Thursday that both the Clifton/McKinley fire in Kelowna and the Clark Creek wildfire in Lake Country to the north are now classified as being held, which means they are not likely to spread beyond predetermined boundaries under current conditions.
Kelowna Fire Chief Travis Whiting said he hopes to have evacuation orders in the city related to the Clifton/McKinley fire reduced to alerts by the end of the day.
"We're going to get everyone home tonight, and that's a big deal," Whiting said Thursday morning.
Whiting urged residents to go to the Central Okanagan Emergency Operation online portal, where it will be announced when neighbourhoods will be safe to return to.
West Kelowna travel restrictions lifted
Travel restrictions for West Kelowna will end Thursday at midnight, B.C.'s emergency management minister Bowinn Ma announced just after 6 p.m. PT, following the end of restrictions to regions elsewhere in the Central Okanagan and Shuswap earlier this week.
Local governments and First Nations found enough accommodation for evacuees in the area, and additional rooms have been booked, said Ma.
"Given the evolving situation and the accommodation we've secured, we are now lifting the travel restriction to West Kelowna," Ma said in a Thursday news release.
"West Kelowna looks forward to welcoming tourists into safe areas in the community once again."
Ma urged travellers to avoid fire-affected areas and listen to directives from local communities before visiting.
"Many communities in the Okanagan are eager to welcome people, while others – like Lake Country – are advising that now is still not a good time to visit," she said.
Fire activity expected to increase
Litke said weather has been favourable to firefighting efforts, but temperatures are expected to rise toward the weekend, and crews are expecting to see a rise in fire activity in the Grouse Complex wildfires — particularly the McDougall Creek wildfire adjacent to West Kelowna, which is burning out of control at a size of 123 square kilometres.
Litke said crews are working on a planned ignition by the Shannon Lake Golf Course in West Kelowna to "address the pockets of unburned fuel on the steep slopes that could challenge containment ... when fire behaviour conditions are expected to increase in the coming days."
An ignition operation might also take place above the Smith Creek drainage, Litke said.
Meanwhile, Kelowna International Airport says some flights are arriving and departing during daytime again. Airspace restrictions were put in place on Aug. 18, and several remain, which could affect arrivals and departures.
"It is not fully open at this point in time , and the hope and expectation is that it will be by the weekend," Kelowna Mayor Tom Dyas said.
The latest count shows 25,000 people have been told to leave their homes due to blazes across B.C.
On Wednesday night, 309 properties were taken off evacuation orders in the West Kelowna area, along with a number of other areas in the District of Lake Country, earlier in the evening, as firefighters made good progress tackling fires like the McDougall Creek blaze.
However, officials also confirmed that 181 properties were damaged or razed by blazes in the Kelowna area. Assessments to determine the full scale of the destruction continue through Thursday.
West Kelowna Fire Chief Jason Brolund says rescinding evacuation orders is not a simple process, and officials have to consider numerous factors, including whether roads can handle an influx of returning cars.
"We need to address the risk and make sure there's no chance of things getting worse because I don't want to have to evacuate anyone a second time," Brolund said.
Officials from the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO) said Wednesday evening that residents will be able to check the status of their homes by entering their address into a new portal.
The RDCO said anyone placed on evacuation order will be able to see via the portal whether their property was damaged. It requested that members of the general public refrain from using it.
No timeline for Shuswap evacuees
An increase in fire activity is also expected in the Shuswap region, where more than 11,000 people remain on evacuation order because of the Bush Creek East fire.
BCWS information officer Forrest Tower told reporters Thursday afternoon that the region's prolonged drought is aggravating the effects of rising temperatures and windier weather.
"We've had a number of instances this summer where rain would have much less of an impact than we'd expect it to," he said.
"It's very dry, and the fire has burned deep into the ground in some areas."
Officials say assessments of the damage caused by the fire are still underway, and they aren't yet giving a timeline for when evacuation orders could be lifted in the area.
"We understand the need for people to want to get back, to want to try to regain some sense of normalcy," said Tracy Hughes, public information officer for the Shuswap Emergency Program.
"However, we just can't afford to put people back in situations that aren't completely vetted and safe."
Tower said the Bush Creek East fire remains the province's top priority wildfire, and up to 150 more firefighters were scheduled to arrive Wednesday and Thursday to help contain the blaze.
Heavy rain helps temper fires
Firefighters in the southern Interior were aided by ample rainfall that fell Wednesday over both the Okanagan and Shuswap, but warm and dry weather is forecasted to return this weekend.
Tower says one weather station near the eastern edge of the Bush Creek East wildfire near Chase received about 20 millimetres of rain in the last day.
Up to 15 millimetres of rainfall was recorded on the wildfire's western edge, he added, leading to a widespread diminishing of fire behaviour.
While rain helped firefighters in the Okanagan and Shuswap Wednesday, it did not reach the Fraser Canyon — where multiple wildfires remain burning around the village of Lytton and reserves of the Lytton First Nation.
Firefighters were set to conduct a planned ignition near the Kookipi Creek blaze south of the village on Wednesday to remove unburned fuel between the fire and nearby communities.
However, the B.C. Wildfire Service says unfavourable winds stalled the operation, with conditions set to be re-evaluated Thursday.
Easterly winds are also expected to blow smoke from the fires towards the coast Thursday and Friday, while southern B.C. may be overcast with a possible isolated shower Friday evening.
READ MORE:
- Protesters tried to bypass an RCMP blockade on the Trans-Canada Highway in the Shuswap region.
- An "incredibly rare" fire tornado was caught on video in the Pemberton area.
- A large pig miraculously survived after a ranch was levelled by a wildfire in West Kelowna.
- The 73-year-old Okanagan Anglican Camp was destroyed in a blaze.
- A young person has been arrested after more than $10,000 of firefighting equipment was stolen.
- Popkum, B.C.'s fire chief, became a Canadian citizen while on the frontlines of a wildfire.
- Wildfires left many migrant workers in dangerous conditions across B.C., according to advocates.
Anyone placed under an evacuation order should leave the area immediately.
Evacuation centres have been set up throughout the province to assist anyone evacuating from a community under threat from a wildfire.
To find the centre closest to you, visit the EmergencyInfoBC website.
Evacuees are encouraged to register with Emergency Support Services online, whether or not they access services at an evacuation centre.
Do you have a story to share?
If you've been affected by the B.C. wildfires and want to share your story, email [email protected].
With files from Randi-Marie Adams and The Canadian Press