More firefighters en route to battle fire south of Peachland

More firefighting resources are being put in place to battle the Finlay Creek wildfire burning between Peachland and Summerland.

As of Tuesday morning, there were 35 firefighters working the blaze, as well as seven helicopters and 18 pieces of heavy equipment.

Fire Information Officer Heather Rice told Global Okanagan News there are more firefighters en route and the number of firefighters could double in the coming days.

WATCH: Dramatic footage of the aerial assault on the Finlay Creek wildfire

1:08 Aerial attack on Finlay Creek Fire

There was no significant growth on the fire overnight and the B.C Wildfire Service said the actual size of the blaze is less than originally thought sitting at around 1,000 hectares and not the 1,500 hectares that was reported Monday.

The B.C. Wildfire Service said the heavy smoke and challenging terrain made it difficult to map the blaze resulting in the discrepancy in size.

Fifty-five properties in Meadow Valley west of Summerland remain under evacuation order.

There are more than 400 properties on evacuation alert, about 300 in the Peachland area and more than 120 in Summerland, in the Faulder area and Garnet Valley Road area.

Hot and dry conditions are expected to remain a challenge over the coming days in the Okanagan.

There has not been significant rainfall in the Finlay Creek area in over 12 weeks.

The fire is highly visible from Peachland and surrounding areas including Highway 97 and Okanagan Lake.

If fixed-wing aircraft need to use Okanagan Lake, boaters are being asked to stay clear of the skimming operations.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.