KELOWNA: Forest fires in Canada’s western province of British Columbia intensified on Saturday, with the number of people under evacuation orders doubling from a day earlier.
The province declared a state of emergency on Friday to access temporary authoritative powers to tackle fire-related risks, as out-of-control fires ripped through interior British Columbia.
“The current situation is grim,” Premier Daniel Eby told reporters, saying some 35,000 people were under an evacuation order, and a further 30,000 were under an evacuation alert.
Eby said the province is in dire need of shelter for evacuees and firefighters and ordered a ban on non-essential travel to make more temporary accommodation available. Officials also urged residents to avoid operating drones in the fire zone, saying it could impede firefighting efforts.
Forest fires are not uncommon in Canada, but the spread of blazes and disruption underscore the severity of its worst wildfire season yet. About 140,000 square km of land have already burned and government officials project the fire season could stretch into autumn due to widespread drought-like conditions in Canada.
British Columbia experienced strong winds and dry lightning in the past few days due to a cold mass of air interacting with hot air built-up in the sultry summer. That intensified existing forest fires and ignited new ones.
“We are still in some critically dry conditions, and are still expecting difficult days ahead,” said Jerrad Schroeder, deputy fire centre manager at the Kamloops Fire Centre.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau convened a meeting of key ministers and senior officials to discuss wildfires. The Incident Response Group, which met for the second time this week, agreed to make “additional resources available” to both British Columbia and the Northwest Territories (NWT).
The fire is centered around Kelowna, a city some 300 kilometres (180 miles) east of Vancouver, with a population of about 150,000. Currently, the fire is not expected to reach city limits by the end of the weekend, officials said, with some rain and cooler temperatures helping to slow its progress.
By Friday, the fire in southern B.C. had grown more than a hundredfold in 24 hours and forced more than 2,400 properties to be evacuated.
The flames have destroyed several structures in West Kelowna and authorities have been warning that the province could potentially face the worst couple of days of the fire season this year.
British Columbia currently accounts for over a third of Canada’s 1,062 active fires. Some 5,000 customers are also without electricity in the interior of the province.
The fires have drained local resources and drawn in federal government assistance as well as support from 13 countries. At least four firefighters have died in the line of duty.
