Four wildfires continue to burn in the northeast part of B.C., keeping Fort St. John on evacuation alert and residents on edge.
However, officials say Tuesday has been a better day than Monday for firefighting efforts.
“We are in better shape today than we were yesterday, certainly, now that we have hunkered down and made it through that extreme wind event,” said Hannah Swift, a fire information officer with the B.C. Wildfire Service.
There are four fires in the Fort St. John area with 400 personnel assigned to the complex, including 22 pieces of heavy equipment and operators and 22 helicopters.
Swift said resources are shared between the four fires and redirected to where the biggest risk is located.
The Wildfire Service will be increasing resources over the coming days to ensure more coverage into the evening and overnight, meaning these fires will have 24/7 moderation.
Swift said the predominant fire growth on Monday was to the south and the southwest due to windy conditions, which is away from the city of Fort St. John. However, the conditions remain unseasonably hot and dry coupled with aggressive fire behaviour.
There has been a bit of a reprieve Tuesday with lower temperatures in the low-to-mid 20s, which is positive for fire crews on the grounds, Swift explained. There are also calmer winds Tuesday. However, an upper ridge is tracking Wednesday and into Thursday, which will bring those higher temperatures again.
The Stoddart Creek wildfire remains the biggest in the region and is now an estimated 23,500 hectares in size. Swift said crews will be able to make some progress with containment lines in the next 72 hours due to the improved conditions.
The Red Creek wildfire, which remains about 3,000 hectares in size, had no new growth Monday and Swift said control lines were not breached, despite the strong winds.
Sixty-two firefighters remain on that fire.
“There is potential for those two incidents to merge,” Swift said. “So the Stoddart Creek wildfire and the Red Creek wildfire could potentially merge. It’s not a concern at this time. It would actually tactically be easier to fight the wildfire as one incident.”
The Cameron River wildfire saw some spotting on Monday, meaning burning fuel was lifted up and over the guards, sparking new fires, Swift said. Fourty-four crews remain on that fire Tuesday, along with helicopters to tamper any aggressive behaviour.
The Boundary Lake wildfire continues to be held, meaning it is not likely to break beyond the guards that have been put in place.
All alerts and orders remain in place at this time.
More than 20,000 people are under evacuation alert, and between 8,500 and 10,000 others have been ordered to leave their homes due to the fires.
Meanwhile, about 20 small rural and First Nations communities have been ordered to pack up and go.
While the area of main concern remains the Prince George Fire Centre, with six wildfires of note, there are 60 wildfires burning in the province at this time.
Officials said Tuesday that while this is an early start to the fire season, it does not mean the season overall will be bad.
“I wouldn’t say there’s anything in the forecast that has me really nervous about what’s to come, because I feel like as an organisation and as a province, we have lived through challenging fire seasons over the last number of years, whether it was 17, 18 or 21 this year,” Cliff Chapman, director of wildfire operations for the BC Wildfire Service said at a press conference Tuesday.
He said when the current ridge of high pressure, which is causing the hot temperatures, breaks down, that is the day everyone will be looking at.
“That’s the day that’s going to really have a significant impact on whether we have lots of fires across the province, minimal fires and what the recovery is going to look like after that,” Chapman added. “So is it bouncing back up to 30 degrees again or is it going to stay seasonal?
“Right now, our forecast is saying that it will stay somewhat seasonal after the breakdown. And I think that’s good news for us in terms of suppressing anything that’s out there right now and or that may start in the next seven days.”
“I guess what I would say is that although it’s higher than our 10-year average, it’s not abnormal for us to have a spring fire season,” Chapman added.
“We have had fire seasons actually in the Peace Country, in the Prince George Fire Centre. I believe it was 2015 where we saw something very similar unfold. And I will reference back to that fire season because after that we saw the spring fire season, we actually had a fairly average summer.”
He said the high temperatures at this time of year are abnormal but the situation is still fluid.
“Given what we’ve seen across B.C. in the last decade, in particular in the last five years, I guess to be candid, I’m not surprised by much anymore. And that’s why we have to turn to preparing for the worst. And ideally, the worst doesn’t happen.”
Meanwhile, a campfire ban is not in place for the province entirely but some bans are in place in the Prince George Fire Centre, the Cariboo Fire Centre and the Northwest Fire Centre.
Chapman said bans and restrictions are something they assess hourly.
“Right now, we have resource capacity in this province,” he said. “We’re not seeing campfires starting fires that we’re dealing with in the northeast at this point in time. And so we’re trying to find a balance between allowing appropriate activity, safe, appropriate activity in every other centre except for the northeast.
“But that’s not to say that by the weekend we may not shift to putting a campfire ban across the province and, or, looking at it next week.”