Wildfire near Savona, B.C. now classified as ‘being held’

The BC Wildfire Service says cool conditions and a bit for rain have been a boon to crews battling a wildfire west of Kamloops.

The 200-hectare Sabiston Creek wildfire, near the community of Savona, is now classified as “being held” according to fire information officer Kyla Fraser.

“We’re not anticipating it should grow any further,” she told Global News.

The fire was spotted on Wednesday and quickly ballooned in size — at one point forcing a several-hour closure of Highway 1.

“Because it was a grass fire, those ones can spread very quickly,” Fraser said.

WATCH: Crews battle a wildfire near Savona

1:51 Crews battle a wildfire near Savona

Ground crews spent much of Wednesday burning off pockets of unburnt brush, while aircrews dropped retardant to help fortify control lines around the fire.

The fire is believed to be human-caused, but its exact cause remains under investigation.

Across the province, 37 fires were burning as of Friday, including the 50-hectare Linklater Creek wildfire near the U.S. border in the East Kootenays.

READ MORE: Hwy. 1 reopens after fast-growing wildfire breaks out west of Kamloops

Fraser said officials remain hopeful a shift in weather patterns will hold, and help buffer the province against the coming fire season.

“If we’re not seeing a lot of rain, then the fuels will be dry and more susceptible to igniting, but the amount of ignitions we see is also going to depend on the amount of lightning strikes, and that’s something we can’t predict ahead of time,” she said.

She added that cooler, damper more typical June conditions had helped to reduce the fire danger rating in a number of parts of the province, but that the total precipitation for the month will play a major factor in what’s to come.