Hundreds of Penticton-area residents who have been forced from their homes for five nights due to the Christie Mountain wildfire burning in the B.C. Interior could be allowed to return home “in the coming days,” according to the local regional district.
Sean Vaisler, the director of the emergency operations centre with the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS), said on Sunday that re-entry plans are in the works.
“It will not occur today but we are looking into that and the RDOS is implementing and developing re-entry plans,” Vaisler said.
“So that is what our focus is today, the re-entry plans and ensuring the safety of the entire community of Heritage Hills before we allow the public to get back in.”
Vaisler said he is confident the 2,035 hectare wildfire no longer poses an urgent or immediate threat to the hillside properties southeast of Penticton.
“The height of the threat of the wildfire affecting Heritage Hills is definitely reduced, the RDOS is still looking at other hazards as well to ensure the safety of the homeowners in the area,” he said.
Vaisler noted that the status of the wildfire is still considered “active” and helicopters and tenders continue to drop water on hot spots. Rescinding the evacuation order will be based on recommendations from the BC Wildfire Service, he said.
As for the evacuation alert zone impacting an additional 3,700 homes and businesses, Vaisler said it will remain in place for now.
“There is still an active wildfire behind there, so we still want to make sure residents are prepared to evacuate if the winds shift and the fire grows, so that alert is preparing homeowners to evacuate,” he said.
Greg Jonuk, fire information officer with the BC Wildfire Service, said on Sunday there was minimal fire activity overnight.
“Crews were making good progress yesterday, fire activity was minimal throughout the day, except around 4:00 p.m. there was some increased activity on the southeast flank,” he said.
Jonuk added that the wildfire is burning into steep, rugged terrain that is unpopulated, but difficult for crews to access on foot.
“The wind shifted yesterday from the north, so if the fire is going to be going anywhere, it is going to be going towards the southeast, away from homes, but it is heading into unburnt fuels, so that is a concern,” he said.
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“Those are the fuels that haven’t been tested yet. We are working on getting access to the area by road, but that is the concern, that it is steep and rocky.”
Penticton Fire Chief Larry Watkinson said there were some close calls, but no additional structures have been lost since one home in Heritage Hills was destroyed on Tuesday night.
“There has been fires that have burned right up to the lines that we established, but it did not ignite the homes based on our efforts for structure protection,” he said on Sunday.
Structural protection infrastructure may be demobilized in the Heritage Hills subdivision in the coming days, ahead of an evacuation order being rescinded, he added.
“I’d like to get those systems off the homes and out of the communities so people don’t feel threatened,” he said.
“We’d like to get it down and off the homes so when they return from evacuation order, they feel that they are in a safe place.”
For more information on the evacuation order and alert areas, click here.
The BC Wildfire Service’s “Fires of Note” page can be found here.
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