In B.C., Okanagan residents have seen firsthand the power of gusting winds to fan the flames of the massive, out-of-control White Rock Lake wildfire.
On Sunday, Aug. 15 the fire, burning northwest of Vernon, surged turning the daytime sky dark, forcing fresh evacuation orders and ultimately burning dozens of structures on the westside of Okanagan Lake.
So North Okanagan residents will be relieved to know that although winds gusting up to 40 km/hr are expected Sunday, the BC Wildfire Service does not expect a return of last weekend’s conditions.
“We are not expecting a wind event like we did last weekend or the weekend before that,” said fire information officer Shannon Street.
“It is just steady winds out there, as far as I am aware. When fire behaviour picks up and it dries out that wind can drive some of the growth of the fire. But, the good news is over the last 24 hours after that precipitation it did give crews a bit of extra time to work on their objectives, work on the guards that they were completing and then also to patrol completed guards and make sure that those are as secure as possible.”
The fire, now estimated at more than 80-thousand hectares, got some rain Saturday morning.
Street said some parts of the fire that were more active near Westside Road got “a fair amount of precipitation,” but, “not enough to stop the fire or put it out.”
Street said no significant growth was seen on the fire overnight.