Canadian Armed Forces battling Cool Creek wildfire near Princeton, B.C.

Sixty-two members of the Canadian Armed Forces descended on Princeton, B.C. Saturday afternoon to assist with fire suppression efforts at the Cool Creek wildfire.

The 12,685 hectare fire is still classified as out of control. It was caused by a lightning strike and detected on Aug. 15 and is burning approximately 20 kilometres northeast of Eastgate.

The military members relocated from Merritt to Princeton to assist ground crews.

“Right now they are assisting us with mop up which means patrolling the burned area and extinguishing any hot spots that they find,” said BC Wildfire Service information officer Brenna Ward.
“It helps to have more boots on the ground so it does end up bolstering what we already have on the ground,” she said.

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1:42 Fire crews getting upper hand in fight against Placer Mountain, Snowy Mountain wildfires

Increasing winds challenged crews on every front due to the steep terrain throughout the fire on Saturday.

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“The fire made some runs at control lines in a few areas. We did see major growth and were challenged with control,” said an information bulletin on the Cool Creek wildfire.

Ward said rainfall and cooler temperatures is helping with containment.

“Crews were able to make pretty good progress and do a direct attack because of the low fire activity which is caused by the lower temperatures and higher humidity values,” she said.

There are a small number of dispersed recreational properties in the vicinity. Cathedral Lakes Lodge remains under an evacuation alert.