A state of emergency has been declared in the Okanagan after a wildfire near Peachland on Monday destroyed one home, forced the removal of at least 37 people and closed the main highway for most of the day.
High winds fanned the flames throughout the day as the fire grew to 30 hectares from five.
The fire was contained by Monday afternoon, but emergency crews are monitoring the weather closely – and residents are on edge. The fire is centred in Seclusion Bay, just four kilometres from the Glenrosa fire in West Kelowna that destroyed three homes last summer.
“We’ve had three fires here in the past five years – you don’t unpack your stuff,” said Raye Bell, who lives in Peachland. “Any personal papers and personal photos I keep packed up.”
Bell said the waterbomber had stopped flying as of late Monday afternoon, but three helicopters were still dumping water on the fire. “Earlier it was really smoky, but it has cleared quite a bit. Maybe the wind is blowing the other way.”
Ida Sharp, who manages Seclusion Bay Resort, discovered the fire about 10:30 a.m. Monday.
“I just happened to see the smoke in my back yard, so I went up and discovered the fire and phoned the fire department,” Sharp said. “It spread really fast because the wind was so heavy. It’s such dry timber there.”
Of the 37 people who needed to be removed from the area, 15 were rescued by water.
People staying at Seclusion Bay Resort were taken out by boat Monday morning. Two police officers were helping an elderly woman down a steep hill to awaiting boats when their police car was enveloped in flames, Const. Steve Holmes said.
“The fire was chasing them down the hill and trees were erupting into flames as they were carrying the lady down the hill,” Holmes said.
The vehicle was later recovered, seriously damaged by the fire. One boat and two garages were also destroyed.
Fire crews were to continue working through the night, while a state of emergency remains in effect in the districts of Peachland and West Kelowna.
A section of Highway 97 near the junction with Highway 97C was closed for most of the day, but reopened to single-lane traffic about 4 p.m. Seclusion Bay Resort and a nearby multi-family complex are currently safe from the fire, the Regional District of Central Okanagan said.
Winds of 20 to 30 km/h were expected to continue through the night, Environment Canada’s David Jones said, adding the weather should settle down by today. On Monday, it was just 16 degrees and overcast in Kelowna, but there was a danger of thunderstorms.
“It’s been hot and dusty for the past week. They’ve had five days at 31 C or above,” Jones said. “We’ve had a real quick fast-acting summertime ridge that popped up and now a trough of very cold air. It’s quite a turnaround, again.”
The cause of the fire is under investigation and likely won’t be determined until the mop-up stage, said Kirsten Jones, public information officer for the region.
Three-quarters of the 457 forest fires in B.C. so far this year were caused by humans, a percentage that’s dramatically higher than in previous years, said Gwen Eamer, provincial fire information officer.
The province has brought in new campfire regulations that limit the size of a campfire to half a metre by half a metre. Failure to follow the new rules could result in a $345 fine, with an additional $345 fine to be levied for campfires lit during a ban. There are no campfire bans in effect, Ho said.
Anyone who causes damage to Crown forest or grass land through arson or recklessness can be fined up to $1 million or spend up to three years in prison.
Last July, B.C. Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell issued a stern warning, saying the province planned to aggressively issue administrative fines and pursue compensation in the courts for costs and damages associated with human-caused wildfires.
“Since 2003, our Wildfire Management Branch has initiated 12 major legal proceedings representing $23 million for contraventions under the Wildfire Act,” Ministry of Forests spokeswoman Cheekwan Ho told The Sun in an e-mail. “Eight have been finalized and three are continuing. These cases are extremely complicated and can stretch over several years.”
Meanwhile, the fire burning at Tolko sawmill in Spallumcheen, near Armstrong, is now under control and residents are being allowed back into their homes. The cause of the fire is still unknown.
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