A well known West Kelowna business was again in the path of a growing fire this weekend.
The fire started just before 5 p.m. Sunday, in the grass and trees at the Glenrosa/97 interchange at the south end of the City of West Kelowna and was headed toward Gorman Bros. Lumber Storage yard.
“A plume of white smoke was highly visible across the city,” fire chief Jason Brolund said in a press release.
Four fire stations in the city responded and their efforts ensured the blaze did not expand past 0.1 hectares, which was remarkable given that the fire was driven by wind and dry grass, and on sloping terrain.
“While this past week’s rain and higher humidity has helped, we still experienced cross-over fire weather conditions this afternoon,” Brolund said.
“Temperatures (above 30 C) and low humidity (below 30 per cent) with winds (above 30 km/h) combined to accelerate the spread of the fire. This is a reminder that we must keep our guard up as fire season continues.”
There were no injuries. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, yet Brolund said it is likely human-caused.
In 2009, winds whipped another Glenrosa wildfire dangerously close to the Gorman family business.
On July 18, 2009, a fire was sparked over the hill behind Gorman Bros. Lumber mill in West Kelowna and the mill’s maintenance crews stayed behind to protect the operation.
Their efforts, alongside those of firefighters, proved successful though the homes of two Gorman family members were lost.