At least 58 structures have been lost to the wildfires burning across three cities in the Central Okanagan, though the tally is not yet complete, officials said.
“I want to share some news that’s going to cause many of you great relief but I also acknowledge that it’s going to cause many of you some ongoing and increased anguish,” West Kelowna fire chief Jason Brolund said during a Monday update, preparing listeners for the news that’s been on people’s minds since the fire broke out Thursday.
So far been approximately 50 structures lost in West Kelowna, though Canada Task Force 1 has told Brolund there were no structural losses in Smith Creek, Talus Ridge, Shannon Lake, and Rose Valley.
“Now I want to temper that by saying we’re not done yet,” Brolund said.
“And the most damaged neighborhoods are still to come.”
Brolund said the fire was so intense in some of the neighbourhoods they’re seeing, it was as though it created its own weather.
“I described it as a hurricane with trees pushed over by their roots,” Brolund said.
“This is the kind of (fire-damaged) neighborhood that we’re in today. So undoubtedly that number (of houses destroyed) will grow higher. But it’s difficult to tell because some of these areas are also the more rural and remote areas of the community so the properties are further apart, and the terrain is more difficult.”
Kelowna fire chief Travis Whiting said there were five structures in his city that he can confirm were lost. Lake Country fire chief Darren Lee said there were two to three properties lost in his city.
The worst of the fire was on Thursday and Friday.
In the last 24 hours the firefight took a change for the better. There have been no new evacuation orders issued and no more homes have been lost as calm, more humid weather lingers.
The “choking” air quality, however, is presenting a challenge to those working on the front lines, Brolund said.
“The firefighters are outside working in it, relentlessly,” he said.
“They’re breathing it for 12, 14 16 hours at a time. So it’s a real challenge. Someone told me today that our air quality here is the worst in the world.”
Some reprieve in that regard may be in the days ahead.
BC Wildfire Service official, Jerrad Schroeder, said the humidity is working in the favour of firefighters for the next couple of days and smoke may start to drift away.
“We’re going to be seeing some winds shift more southerly as the day progresses and into tomorrow,” Schroeder said.
“There’ll be in a fashion that we’re not expecting any rapid increases in fire behavior spread on any of these fires. So for today, while we are still working in the context of extreme drought conditions and our fire weather values are at extreme levels, we’re not expecting any significant explosive growth.”
It is, he said, “effectively another good day to fight fire.”
The McDougall Creek wildfire, the largest of the three fires in the region, is still mapped at 11,000 hectares — a number unchanged from the weekend in large part due to the lack of visibility caused by a thick layer of smoke.
Further support has come to help with everything from evacuees to the fire fight itself.
There are 41 fire departments from across B.C. that have loaned resources to the effort. And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said the Canadian Forces are being deployed to the Okanagan to assist with evacuations, staging and other logistical tasks.
Currently, an estimated 30,000 people have been told to flee their homes. The extent of damage has yet to become clear.
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