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Trail, B.C. wildfire sparks up in the forest between a hospital and a high school

The McQuarrie Creek fire, burning just north of the hospital in Trail, B.C. on Sept. 11, 2018. Twitter/BC Wildfire Service

B.C. wildfire crews were “aggressively” tackling a two-hectare wildfire that sparked up and came within several hundred metres of Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital in Trail on Tuesday.

The McQuarrie Creek fire, which was believed to have been triggered by lightning, was fought using ground crews, helicopters and four air tankers.

Crews made good progress by nighttime, said the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary.

The blaze was considered a “slope-driven fire” and it wasn’t believed to be threatening any structures, according to the BC Wildfire Service.

It was burning between the hospital and JL Crowe Secondary School, though it was also moving away from town.

Coverage of B.C. wildfires on Globalnews.ca:

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Access to the hospital was limited to emergency traffic, according to the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary.

Emergency room patients were diverted to the Castlegar and District Health Centre.

That facility normally closes at 8 p.m. but it was being kept open on Tuesday.

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

Crews are expected to monitor the fire throughout the night and then action it once again on Wednesday.

Trails that are accessed from Sunningdale, Miral Heights have been closed alongisde the Raven’s Rock trail.

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