Emergency officials order 14 more properties to evacuate from massive fire north of Fort St. John - Action News
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British Columbia

Emergency officials order 14 more properties to evacuate from massive fire north of Fort St. John

New evacuation orders were issued on Sunday evening as out-of-control wildfires continue to upend life for many British Columbians.

They are the latest such orders in the province, which as of Sunday had 82 active fires

smoke billows from a forest fire on a hill above several houses in a town.
The West Kiskatinaw River fire is seen billowing smoke behind homes in the town of Tumbler Ridge, B.C. in this photo by the B.C. Wildfire Service on Sunday, June 11, 2023. Residents of the community have been forced to evacuate. (B.C. Wildfire Service)

Emergency authorities in the Peace region added 14 more properties to those ordered to evacuate from a massive, out-of-control wildfire on Sunday night.

They are the latest evacuation orders from the district related to the massive Donnie Creek fire, which is one of the largest recorded in B.C. at 4,050 square kilometres in size.

They are the latest such orders in the province, which as of Sunday had 82 active fires, nearly half of them classified as out of control.

Wildfires continue to upend life for many British Columbians. On Saturday, theNorthern Rockies Regional Municipality issuedevacuation ordersin northern B.C.due to a fire in the Ittsi Creek and Maxhamish Lake area, covering portions of Maxhamish Lake Provincial Park in B.C.'s far north.

The wildfire that prompted thoseorders is currently burning west of the provincial park and had grown Sunday to 22 square kilometres, more than doubling in size overnight.

In Tumbler Ridge, in the province's northeast, evacuation orders and alerts have remained in placefor the 2,400 residents of the town due to the West Kiskatinaw River wildfire, which was within three kilometresof the townsite earlier in the week.

While the large fire burning over an area of 197square kilometres led to concern for the town, located in a UNESCO Global Geopark, fire officials said they hoped cooler conditions and a wind shift on Saturday would aid them throughout the weekend.

"Weather prediction is for calm and clear conditions [Sunday] morning, which will help crews continue to work on establishing guards and containment lines to protect Tumbler Ridge," read a status update from the town.

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The nearby Peavine Creek blaze continues to burn close to Highway 52, which has meant the indefinite closure of the route near the B.C.-Alberta border.

An evacuation alert means residents should prepare to evacuate their homes, possibly with little to no notice.An evacuation order means a resident should leave immediately.

Vancouver Island highway remains shut

TheCameron Bluffs wildfirecontinues to burn near Port Albernion Vancouver Island, covering a small area just south of Cameron Lake. The wildfireis right next to Highway 4, prompting theclosure ofthe major east-west routeon Tuesday.

A detour, which extends travel time by four more hours, was set up using logging roads earlier in the week, with officials saying only essential travel should be undertaken due to the treacherous nature of the route. It features rough roads and some single-lane bridges. There is no cellphone service along the stretch.

Ina statement on Saturday, the province saidfour convoys of commercial vehicles will be guided along the route daily beginning Sunday morning. The convoys are set to carry essential goods morning and eveninguntil further notice.

"Commercial vehicles will also be permitted to travel outside of these windows, however, there will be no pilot vehicles at those times," the statement read. "Other drivers will be placed behind the convoys because the priority is the movement of essential supplies, such as fuel and food."

The first convoy left from Lake Cowichan, on the other end of the long detour, at 5 a.m. Sunday.


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