As of the time of writing on September 4, the Elephant Hill wildfire has increased to 192,725 hectares and is still only 50 per cent contained, according to the BC Wildfire Service. The western and southern containment lines are not being challenged at this time.
The current fire activity is located mostly in the north and eastern portions of the fire zone. On August 29, the BC Fire Commissioner’s Office put out a call for structural protection crews from around the province to assist in fighting fires in that area, and the Ashcroft Volunteer Fire Department sent an engine with four crew aboard to help. They joined equipment and firefighters from more than 20 municipalities around the province that have sent resources before returning home on September 3.
“Lots of different areas from around B.C. are lending a hand here to help with that structural component, where our wildland firefighters are both not equipped and don’t have the necessary safety apparatus to do any kind of structural firefighting,” said fire information officer Claire Allen. “We just handle the trees burning in the vicinity of structures.
“Given the provincial state of emergency, it’s something we’ve used this season—especially on this fire—before. We’ve had numerous rotations of structural firefighters that were working predominantly in the Loon Lake area several weeks ago on this fire. It’s definitely something that’s been going on this fire for some time, especially with the structural interface impact that this fire has had.
“We want to get all the trained help we can in order to keep homes protected, and they’ve definitely done an amazing job getting the sprinkler protection units set up on homes.”
On September 1 an Evacuation Order was put in place for the Highway 24 corridor around eastern Green Lake, Watch Lake, and Sheridan Lake. On September 2 the fire got within a few hundred metres of Sheridan Lake, but skimmer, tankers, and structural protection crews worked the head of the fire aggressively. A shift in the wind drove the fire away from properties along the lake, and also caused the smoke to move into the Deadman Valley and Kamloops.
Crews, heavy equipment, and structural protection specialists are working with 24-hour coverage in critical places along the fire’s north flank.
On the northeast flank, crews and equipment are working north from Pressy Lake to build lines to tie in with ongoing line construction, while crews continue to work to secure lines by Young Lake and along the east flank to Hihium Lake.
Air resources were grounded on September 3 due to the smoke in the north flank. A boat provided by the Conservation Officer Service worked with structural firefighters to reach properties on Sheridan Lake to assess and secure homes.
On September 1, the provincial state of emergency that was first declared on July 7 was extended for the fourth time. It now runs through the end of day on September 15, 2017.
The extension ensures that federal, provincial, and local resources can be delivered in a coordinated response to the wildfire situation, and continue to ensure public safety. As of September 1 there were 160 wildfires burning around the province, with 16 Evacuation Orders affecting approximately 3,622 individuals, plus 39 Evacuation Alerts impacting approximately 13,670 people.
On September 4, an Evacuation Order for the Empire Valley Road area in TNRD Area “E” (Bonaparte Plateau) was rescinded and changed to All Clear. The area has been under Evacuation Order since August 4.
An area restriction for all Crown land in the vicinity of the Elephant Hill wildfire that was put in place on August 20 was updated as of September 3, and has expanded to include Horse Lake Road, Sheridan Lake, and the entirety of Green Lake. It will remain in place until the earlier of noon on October 31, 2017 or until the order is rescinded.
This restriction has been put in place to protect public safety and to ensure the safety of firefighting personnel who continue with fire suppression activities.
The order applies to all Crown land within the geographic boundaries as outlined on a map, which is available online at http://ow.ly/qhPM30eSPFF. The restriction does not include private land, or the landfill and transfer station south of Cache Creek.
