Man With Gun Threatens Firefighter

A man has been arrested after a firefighter was allegedly threatened in Williams Lake.

RCMP Staff Sgt. Annie Linteau says the fireman was working in an area when a man threatened to kill him if he continued to conduct back burning.

“He was accompanied by a group of men, one of whom was apparently carrying a handgun on him. And in speaking with the individual who made the threat, he acknowledged the statements were made in a time of extreme stress,” Linteau told the daily wildfire news conference.

The man with the handgun was arrested and will face charges.

Six rifles were seized from his vehicle.

“We know these wildfires have been stressful on everyone involved, but we have to continue working together to fight them, and certainly that includes respecting the fire fighters who are out doing their job,” adds Linteau, who was not aware what charges the man may face.

The number of active wildfires in BC continues to trend downwards.

There are 140 burning today, with just four new starts on Tuesday.

“We still do have 27 fires of note right now, 15 of which are posing present threats to communities,” says Kevin Skrepnek of the BC Wildfire Service.

Skrepnek says rain is expected in many areas Thursday, but then it’s back to the hot, dry weather.

“We certainly hope that rain does materialize, but it does look like it’s going to be a very brief event.”.