Tuesday, July 20, 2021

Cariboo Fire Centre General Update of July 20th, 2021

Courtesy of the BC Wildfire Service/Cariboo Fire Centre:

There are currently 47 active wildfires within the Cariboo Fire Centre.  

 

Today is forecasted to have variable cloud over the west with isolated afternoon thundershowers. There is a moderate chance of lightning in the northwest associated with these thundershowers. The east of the fire centre will remain mainly sunny. The fire danger rating in the Quesnel Zone is moderate with pockets of low in the west and a pocket of high in the east and the Horsefly Zone is high with pockets of moderate.  The Chilcotin, Central, and 100 Mile Zones remain high to extreme. The BC Wildfire Service website displays the current fire danger rating for the province here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status/wildfire-situation/fire-danger 

 

At this time, the BC Wildfire Service has not recommended backcountry closures. All trails and backroads that are not affected by Area Restriction Orders, Evacuation Orders, or are otherwise under municipal jurisdiction or BC Parks jurisdiction, remain open for public use. There are currently several provincial parks affected by wildfires; check the BC Parks website for updates on alerts and closures. Members of the public must remain vigilant and act responsibly when recreating in the backcountry. Know before you go: check the local fire danger rating, download the BC Wildfire Service app and stay up to date with location-specific wildfire information.  

 

The Cariboo Fire Centre responded to G32069 in the area of Jacobie Lake early this morning. The fire is 0.2 hectares and there are currently ten BCWS personnel suppressing this fire. The fire is now classified as being held. 

 

Wildfires of Note 

There are nine Wildfires of Note within the Cariboo Fire Centre. Three fires are being managed by an Incident Management Team (Succour Lake, Flat Lake, and S of Canim Lake). Below is a summary for your information, and you can also find these details on the Wildfire of Note page, which is updated twice daily. Before this summary is sent out, the Wildfire of Note pages will be updated.  

 

Purdy Lake 

The wildfire is estimated to be 7,900 hectares in size. No significant growth occurred yesterday or over the past several days. Crews have worked hard over the past several days, taking advantage of favorable conditions and have made notable progress with fire suppression. Helicopters were onsite bucketing yesterday to support structure protection. BC Parks have been engaged regarding suppression in the Kluskoil park.   

An Evacuation Alert has been issued by the Cariboo Regional District. This Evacuation Alert area now borders the Evacuation Order and Evacuation Alert issued by the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako for the Grizzly Lake wildfire in the Prince George Fire Centre. 

 

McKinley Lake 

The McKinley Lake wildfire is 1,834 hectares in size. No significant growth occurred yesterday despite increased fire activity. Personnel and equipment have established guard around the entire fire. Personnel are now patrolling the edges of the fire and actioning hot spots. Personnel will be working to remove unburnt fuel between the main fire and established guards with small scale ignitions when conditions allow. 

An Evacuation Alert issued by the Cariboo Regional District for Crooked Lake remains in effect.  

 

Chasm  

The Chasm wildfire is 400 hectares. There was no significant growth on the fire yesterday. Personnel and equipment have made notable progress on the south and east flanks.  

An Evacuation Alert has been issued by the Thompson-Nicola Regional District.  

 

Young Lake  

The Young Lake wildfire is estimated at 1400 hectares. BCWS has been monitoring this fire, which exhibited low fire behaviour and limited growth over the past several days. Yesterday, six BCWS personnel were on site setting up structure protection units and constructing hang guard around properties.  

Late yesterday afternoon, fire behaviour increased, and the fire pushed towards the northeast. An officer assessed the situation this morning and six BCWS personnel will be on site today to establish structure protection. Air tankers will also be on site today to support structure protection in the area. The Cariboo Fire Centre is in the process of taking this fire over from the Sparks Lake Incident Management Team.  

 

Big Stick Lake 

The wildfire north of Big Stick Lake is estimated to be 6,580 hectares in size. The fire did see some growth yesterday but due to smoke in the area, a new map has not been produced. Winds picked up in the late yesterday afternoon which coupled with warm temperatures, led to fire growth on the northeast part of the fire around Long Lake along the Smoky FRS and within the existing perimeter. Bucketing helicopters and water skimming aircraft worked the active parts of the fire head on the north side and cooled hotspots to reinforce the fire guards. Firefighters are running night operations in conjunction with heavy equipment to take advantage of cooler temperatures and higher minimum relative humidity to continue making good progress in key areas on the southeast flank (east of Highway 20). Firefighters and heavy equipment are working to reinforce the fire guards in critical areas around the fire, supported by structural protection specialists. 

An Evacuation Order is in effect for the Big Stick wildfire area. This order replaces the Evacuation Alert issued by the Cariboo Regional District on July 10.  

An Evacuation Alert issued by the Cariboo Regional District has been expanded and remains in effect for the Big Stick wildfire area. 

 

Hotnarko Creek 

The Hotnarko Creek wildfire is estimated at 1,500 hectares. There was a 5-hectares excursion due to increased activity on the north flank adjacent to Highway 20. This resulted in a temporary road closure to allow for wildfire operations, including airtankers and water skimming aircraft, to operate while maintaining public safety. The highway reopened as of 10:00 PM last night, though drivers are urged to exercise caution due to smoke and equipment working. Road closures may occur to continue ongoing operations and to maintain public safety. 

 

Summary of other wildfires  


Below is a summary of some of the active fires, by zone, as of today. For current sizes on wildfires not listed below, please check the All Current Wildfires web page. 


Quesnel Fire Zone  

There are seven active wildfires burning in this zone.  

3 fires are now classified as under control and 4 are out of control. 


Central Cariboo Zone  

There are eight active wildfires burning in this zone.  

2 fires are now classified as under control and 6 are out of control. 

 

100 Mile Fire Zone 

The Incident Management Team (IMT) is managing wildfires to the north of Highway 24 and east of Highway 97 within this zone. The is managing 18 of the 27 active wildfires in the zone, with the Cariboo Fire Centre managing the remainder. 12 of the fires in the 100 Mile zone are now under control, 4 are being held, and 11 are out of control. 

 

100 Mile Incident Management Team Managed Wildfires of Note: 


S of Canim Lake  

This wildfire is estimated at 2,487 hectares. Over the next few days, crews will work to establish guards in the south. This includes working the southwest corner establishing established a wet line (hosed area). They will also be working on a wet line from the northeast down the north guard. Crews will be monitoring the east flank.  

The Cariboo Regional District has upgraded the existing Evacuation Alert to an Evacuation Order on the south side of Canim Lake. The north side remains on an Evacuation Alert. 

 

Succour Lake 

The Succour Lake wildfire is estimated at 529 hectares. There has been minimal growth of this wildfire over the last 10 days. It is not immediately threatening any communities or access roads at this time. However, due to the potential for warm and dry conditions combined with the proximity to values, evacuation alerts remain in effect.  

The Cariboo Regional District has expanded the existing evacuation alerts on both the north and south sides of Canim Lake (See above). 

 

Flat Lake 

The Flat Lake wildfire is 19,247 hectares. Planned ignitions conducted yesterday successfully created an anchor point from which crews are now working. There will be ongoing planning to determine where additional ignitions opportunities are needed. 

On July 17, 2021, the Thompson Nicola Regional District upgraded an Evacuation Alert to an Order for the Flat Lake Wildfire Electoral E (Bonaparte Plateau) in the vicinity of Gustafsen and Neilson Lakes. The additional Evacuation Alert issued by the Thompson Nicola Regional District remains in place. The Evacuation Order and Alert issued by the Cariboo Regional District remain in place. 

 

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