'Most homes' in Lytton, B.C., destroyed by catastrophic fire, minister says

Dozens of families forced to flee their homes as a catastrophicfire devastated asmall villagein B.C.'s Fraser Canyonare now working to find lovedones scattered in the evacuations, whileemergency officials urgentlytry to account for everybody in the community.

More than 1,000 peopleliving in and around Lytton, B.C.,northeast of Vancouver,were forced to leavewith little notice Wednesday.They racedout of town as smoke and flames virtually decimated the entirecommunity inone of the most destructive fire emergencies in recent memory.

The province said Thursday the lossincludes "mosthomes" and structures in the village,as well as the local ambulance station and RCMP detachment. The local member of parliament said 90 per cent of the village is gone.

Online community groups were filled with posts from people desperate for information about family, friends and pets left behind. The challenge will betrying to confirm where residents wentand connect them with their families, officials said.

"We are receiving calls from people looking for family and loved ones as well, and it's really hard because of power outages and cellphone towers being down, but we're working on that," Scott Hildebrand, chief administrative officer withthe Thompson-Nicola Regional District, told CBCNews early Thursday.

"One of our challenges right nowis that we had people leave in all different directions."

B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworthsaid the RCMPis investigating the location of any residents who are unaccounted for, butcould not provide an exact number.

WATCH | Local farmer talks aboutLytton's grim situation:

Lytton, B.C. residents devastated by fires

3 years ago

Duration 3:49

Jon Mundall, a farmer and local business owner in Lytton, B.C., shared the grim situation his community is facing in dealing with the fires as well as the difficulties that lay ahead.

In a statement,Lytton RCMPsaidit is currently unsafe for anyone to enter the town and additional 100 officers have been deployed toassist with investigation efforts.

"The situation is being continually assessed and when safe to do so we will be entering the area to conduct a formal search, specifically for any injured or missing people," saidDwayne McDonald, commanding officer of the B.C.RCMP.

Defence Minister HarjitSajjantold CBCNews that the federal governmentis also co-ordinating with the B.C. governmenton how to provide support.

Disaster Financial Assistanceisavailable for areas impacted by wildfires. Town officials and Indigenous communitiescan request moneyto cover the cost of damaged public infrastructure, like bridges and roads,not covered by insurance.

Individuals are encouraged to contact their insurance providers for personal loss.

"We'll also look at what future support is going to be needed for the rebuild itself,"he said.

'The town burnt down'

Lytton Mayor Jan Poldermansigned the official evacuation order at 6 p.m. PT onWednesday.He said thevillage was overcome by flames before officials had the chance to co-ordinate a place for people to go, so many just started driving.

"The town burnt down," Polderman said, his voice hoarse as he spoke from a family member's home in Maple Ridge, B.C.

"I noticed some white smoke at the south end of town and within 15 to 20 minutes, the whole town was engulfed in flame."

Video captured by residents rushing out of town showed numerous buildings on fire.Charred rubble was all that remained of the town's main street.

WATCH | Officials trying to track down evacuees:

Officials try to confirm whereabouts of all Lytton, B.C., evacuees

3 years ago

Duration 2:31

Residents of Lytton, B.C., left town so fast Wednesday to escape a wildfire that there is uncertainty about where everyone went, said Jackie Tegart, the MLA for Fraser-Nicola, the riding that includes Lytton. (2 Rivers Remix Society/Vimeo)

The community of Lillooet, north of Lytton, took in dozens of evacueesthrough the evening. A district representative said Thursday they had an official count of188 people, but the number was likely higher as many evacuees hadnot formally registered.

Other evacuees sought refuge in the nearby community ofBoston Bar. At least 52 people went to thereception centrein Merritt to the east.

MP Brad Vis, who represents MissionMatsquiFraser Canyon, said in a Facebook post that90 per cent of the village was lost. He said he heard from constituents Wednesday who lost their homes and couldn't get in touch withfamily.

I noticed some white smoke at the south end of town and within 15 to 20 minutes, the whole town was engulfed in flame.- Jan Polderman, mayor of Lytton, B.C.

"What I've been told is that the situation is dire and the authorities are trying to account for everyone," Vis told the CBClate Wednesday.

Vis andPolderman urgedevacuees to register with an evacuation centre to help authorities with their count.

"So we can look for the people, if there are any people, that didn't make it out alive," Polderman said.

The Lytton First Nation is also still trying to account for all of its members. The province said evacuees should register online at theEvacuee Registration & Assistance site.

Those looking for loved ones should call the police nearest to them for guidance, Farnworth said.

'Everybody in Lytton has lost everything'

Finding accommodation for evacuees has also proven difficult. The fire broke out on the eve of the first major long weekend of the summer, with British Columbianstravellingagainunder loosened pandemic restrictions already having bookedmany rooms in town.

"We are struggling with capacity," said Hildebrand.

Bonnie Nixonlives in the Gladwin trailer park a few kilometres north of Lytton. She grabbed some clothes and her medication before jumping into a neighbour's car to "get the hell out of there."

"[I was] crying, crying, crying. Fell asleep crying. Then you wake up this morning and here we are," said Nixon, sitting outside an evacuation centre in Merritt, where she can stay for at least seven days.

"Everybody in Lytton has lost everything, my sister included. She had a house down there. Gone."

Conditions in Lytton were dangerously hot, dry and windy on Wednesday. Thearea endured the highest temperature ever seen in Canada on three consecutive days during an extreme heat wave earlier this week, toppingout at 49.6 C on Tuesday.

"The conditions have been unprecedented in terms of dryness and heat," said Erika Berg, a fire information officer with the B.C. Wildfire Service.

She saidground and air crews hadresponded to the fire throughout the night and wouldcontinue their work onThursday.

WATCH | Smoke and flames engulf Lytton:

Fast-moving fire tears through village of Lytton, B.C.

3 years ago

Duration 2:33

A sudden, rapidly spreading fire in Lytton on B.C.'s Fraser River forced hundreds of people from their homes with little to no notice on June 30, 2021. (Supplied by Gary Abbott)

Officials suspect train causedfire

Hildebrand said officials have a suspicion as to how the fire started. "It's still not confirmed, but it appears a train may have sparked the blaze," he told CBCNews.

B.C. Premier John Horgan said Thursday he'd heard the train theory "anecdotally" but cautionedthe investigation is ongoing.

CN Rail did not report any issuesto the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) related to atrain incident in Lytton, the agency said Thursday.

"The TSB has not received any reports that the fires in Lytton, B.C. were started by a train," said spokesperson Chris Krepski.

Later Wednesday night, residents of another 87 properties to the north of Lytton were ordered to leave home as well.

On Thursday, Farnworth said the fire was still burning "aggressively" and according to B.C. Wildfire Serviceit's grown to 64 square kilometres in size.

Fire information officer Jean Strong, told CBC that firefighters are currently focusing on the northwestflank and have had some success.

Another spokesperson for the regional district said hundreds of people in First Nations communities may have also been ordered to evacuate, but it was hard to get in contact with their local governments.

Firefighters were already dealing with at leasttwo other wildfires in the area when the latest fire tore throughLytton.

The George Road wildfire, burning south of the village, was last estimated to be 350 hectares at 7:59 p.m. PT Wednesday, and the nearby Conte Creek fire wasestimated at 1.5 hectares.

Anyone placed under an evacuation order must leave the area immediately.

Evacuation centres have been set up in the following locations to assist anyone evacuating from a community under threat from a wildfire:

• Castlegar: Castlegar Community Complex, 2102 6th Ave.
• Chilliwack: Chilliwack Senior Secondary, 46363 Yale Rd.
• Kelowna: Salvation Army, 1480 Sutherland Ave.
• Merritt: Merritt Civic Centre, 1950 Mamette Ave.

Evacuees are encouraged to register with Emergency Support Services online, whether or not they access services at an evacuation centre.

Those looking for loved ones can contact the Canadian Red Cross for family reunification services at 1-800-863-6582.