‘Everybody’s out safe’: Princeton Mayor says festival safely evacuated from Rice Road wildfire

People at risk from an out of control wildfire near Princeton have left the area safely, thanks to a community effort.

The Rice Road wildfire, spotted Sunday night, is mapped at 16 hectares and burning around 11 kilometres northwest of Princeton, BC Wildfire officials said Monday morning.

It’s not threatening structures and there are 29 personnel, along with two helicopters working to douse the blaze.

Compared to other fires burning in B.C., it’s fairly small, but on Sunday night when it was first spotted its proximity to the location of a five-day festival offered some complications. Festival goers were ordered to leave the area with little time to pack belongings or vehicles.

“Between 200 and 500 people were at this rave while the fire was burning up there, so a tactical evacuation took place,” Princeton mayor Spencer Coyne said Monday morning.

He along with the Tulameen Fire Department and RCMP went into the private property where people were staying and they helped everyone from the area.

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“They jumped in each other’s cars and we took the Princeton Posse junior hockey team bus out,” Coyne said. “Luckily, most people had already left by the time we got there, but we showed up at the Coalmont fire hall. to evacuate anybody that was leftover, and we got the last evacuee out at about 1 a.m.”

Only one person wasn’t able to drive out on their own.

“It is a good news story,” he said. “Everybody’s out safe and there was nobody harmed in this fire. I’m always proud of my valley. Our people are amazing.”
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He’s also been impressed with how the BC Wildfire Service attacked the fire both from the ground and with air support in the hours that have passed.

BC Wildfire crews along with fire crews from Coalmont and Tulameen are responding to the fire near White Sands Beach.

Monday morning, Chief Jody Woodford Tulameen and District Fire Department did have to issue a warning to those on Otter Lake to keep their boats to the side, given that the skimmer crews needed room to refill safely.

Their crews had been working throughout the night along with BCWF crews to douse the fire.