UPDATE: Crews making progress on guards and hot spots on White Rock Lake fire; orders and alerts still in place

“Crews are working on extinguishing any hot spots that might remain and patrolling. And what we’re finding is the fire is burning very deep underground, so it does take very diligent patrolling and mop-up activities to ensure that there is full extinguishment before we make any changes to any recommendations to changes on the evacuation orders and alerts for that area,” Swift told Vernon Matters on Monday morning.

Hundreds of residents from the Westside Road area are still on evacuation order or alert.

Listen below to Hannah Swift from the BC Wildfire Service with an update on the White Rock Lake wildfire.

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The fire still has an estimated size of 80,745 hectares and is classified as out of control.

According to BC Wildfire conditions today for crews fighting the fire are expected to be favorable, with lower temperatures and lower humidity, but gusty winds are still forecast and fire behaviour could increase later in the day as a result.

“Another day passed yesterday without an incident, as all agencies continue their incredible hard work” said Alex Van Bruksvoort, Fire Chief North Westside Fire Rescue.” North Westside Fire Rescue continued their patrols through all neighbourhoods making sure homes and property were free of ignition sources. The Regional District of Central Okanagan and North Westside Fire Rescue continues to support the removal and feeding of pets and animals. Patience is something I am personally asking for moving forward, and please keep the faith as we’re doing absolutely everything we can for all North Westside residents.”

UPDATE Aug. 23 10:00 a.m.

No major changes to the White Rock Lake wildfire, which still has an estimated size of 80,745 hectares and is classified as out of control.

There are no changes to the evacuation orders and alerts.

The BC Wildfire Service says the extremely dry conditions on the fire’s east flank along Westside Road is resulting in incredibly deep burning, making it difficult to bring the area to full extinguishment.

“Crews and equipment will continue to defend pre-established containment lines above communities and protect structures. Structure protection personnel are continuing to action hot spots and mop-up around impacted interface areas,” said the BCWS on its website.

On the northeast flank, south of Glenemma, heavy equipment continues to construct the guard from Irish Creek to Six Mile Creek which should be done by Tuesday.

On the north flank, crews are looking to complete mop-up from Biancotto Lake north to Paxton Lake, and north to Highway 97. There continues to be no growth along all fire perimeters of the northern finger north of Highway 97 and down towards Woods Lake.

West flank: This flank of the fire continues to be monitored by aerial resources. No growth has been observed along this flank over the past week. Crews are continuing with mop-up work along this flank. Heavy equipment is beginning construction on a contingency line around the Monte Creek area.

South flank: Aerial resources continue to monitor this flank of the fire. A 52-kilometre contingency guard has been established south of the fire perimeter from Chapperon Lake moving eastward towards Fintry Park

B.C. has 245 active fires today with no new fires in the last two days.

UPDATE Aug. 22

While the White Rock Lake wildfire is less visible today, the 80,745 hectare fire remains active and out of control.

The Evacuation Order for 1,316 properties and Alert for 850 properties remain unchanged for properties in the North Westside community within the Regional District of the Central Okanagan.

The Evacuation Order for properties on the Okanagan Indian Band also remains in effect.

Overnight crews continued fire suppression activities into the early morning hours, including extinguishing hot spots. Today, the North Westside Fire Rescue, BC Wildfire Services and provincial firefighting crews are conducting fireguard.

The weather has been favorable, with cooler temperatures over the weekend supporting fire efforts. However, conditions remain extremely dry and crews are preparing for forecasted high winds later today.

“BC Hydro is on site today and working with fire crews to install new power infrastructure for the North Westside community,” said Alex Van Bruksvoort, Fire Chief North Westside Fire Rescue. “And as our crews work with provincial fire crews coming into the area today, we want the public to know that we are working hard in collaboration with all agencies involved. We know residents want to return home, and we are doing all we can to ensure this can happen when it is safe to do so.”

While there is not a specific time-frame for when evacuation orders will be lifted, evacuees should expect that they will not be able to access their home for an extended period of time.

Evacuees are reminded that they cannot access their properties while the Order is in place. Even in areas where the fire has passed through, embers can go deep into tree roots and flare up at any time. Avoiding the area ensures that emergency responders can effectively and safely perform their duties.

“This week our focus in the Emergency Operations Centre is to support residents who have lost their homes as they start the recovery process,” said Doug Gilchrist, Director, Central Okanagan Emergency Operations. “Fire conditions permitting, we will be doing this by coordinating a site visit with these home owners, providing a limited media site visit and we are also planning for a virtual town hall meeting for the owners of these approximately 70 properties.”

“We know there remains thousands of other residents deeply concerned for their homes. We ask for their patience and I can assure them we are working hard alongside crews on the ground and partner agencies to determine when it may be safe to return to their home,” says Gilchrist. “We understand the stress involved with the uncertainty that this fire is providing and will provide more detailed information as soon as it is available for the 1,300 evacuated properties.”

Nearly all property owners whose properties have sustained significant damage have been contacted directly. If residents have not received a call from the EOC it is determined that based on current conditions and initial assessment that their home has not been significantly damaged. That being said, not all areas have been able to be accessed due to the active fire and the possibility of hot spots and flare ups remain. It is anticipated that some homes may have sustained smoke and water damage, and that restoration work may be needed.

Evacuated residents can call 1-833-498-3770 to register and access assistance, such as lodging and food, from Emergency Support Services. The ESS reception centre at 1480 Sutherland Avenue is open today from noon until 6 p.m. and will be open tomorrow, Monday, August 23 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Registering with the ESS, even if you do not need support, provides a way for the EOC to contact property owners whose properties have been damaged.

UPDATE: Aug. 22

Fire crews are getting help from Mother Nature in the battle against the White Rock Lake wildfire on Sunday.

The temperatures are cooler, with a high of 20, and there is a 60 per cent chance of showers, with some precipitation already on Sunday morning.

The fire, 10 kilometres west of Vernon, is estimated at 80,745 hectares, same as Saturday.

The BCWS provided similar information as Saturday on the out of control fire’s status:

Suppression activities continues on all flanks of the fire with a focus along Westside Road where the wildfire has impacted communities. Precipitation received throughout the morning yesterday helped to lessen fire activity for a period of time, however not all areas of the fire received precipitation. Mainly cloudy with isolated to scattered afternoon showers or thunderstorms. A maximum temperature of 16 degrees, and minimum relative humidity of 40%. Winds are expected to be west-southwest, 10-15 km/hr with gusts up to 40 km/hr.

Fire Operations Update
East flank: Crews and equipment will continue to defend pre-established containment lines above communities and protect structures. Structure protection personnel are continuing to action hot spots and mop-up around impacted interface areas. The Drought Code in this area of the fire is resulting in incredibly deep burning forest fuels making it difficult to bring this area to full extinguishment. Heavy equipment continues to work on re-establishing containment lines from the Terrace Mountain fire (2009) to tie into the guard at Stuart Lake. Heavy equipment is also working along the Bouleau FSR towards Bouleau Lake to open up the tree canopy along the road.

Northeast flank, south of Glenemma: Heavy equipment continues to construct the guard from Irish Creek to Six Mile Creek. Crews are working on holding the guard between Irish Creek and McGregor Creek closer to the fire perimeter.

North flank: Today, crews are continuing to patrol and mop-up from Adelphi FRS to Woods Lake, Grange FSR west to Douglas Road, from Biancotto Lake north to Paxton Lake, and north to Highway 97. There continues to be no growth along all fire perimeters of the northern finger north of Highway 97 and down towards Woods Lake. Heavy equipment operators continue with guard construction south of the powerlines, along McGregor FSR. A BC Wildfire Service Unit Crew is continuing to build a fuel-free guard towards the north end of Pinaus Lake.

West flank: This flank of the fire continues to be observed by aerial resources. No growth has been observed along this flank over the past week. Crews are continuing to mop up along the Ingram Forest Service Road (FSR) and along the Private FSR with support from heavy equipment to ensure the control line is well secured. Heavy equipment is beginning construction on a contingency line around the Monte Creek area.

South flank: Aerial resources continue to monitor this flank.

White Rock Lake fire showing increased activity, size reduced
Aug 21, 2021 | 12:00 PM

Activity has been increasing through the week on the White Rock Lake wildfire which continues to burn about 10 kilometres west of Vernon.

“Throughout the week increasing fire behaviour had been observed along the northeast flank, east flank, and southeast flank,” stated an update from the BC Wildfire Service on Saturday.

“Suppression activities continues on all flanks of the fire with a focus along Westside Road where the wildfire has impacted communities. Precipitation received throughout the morning today has helped to lessen fire activity, however not all areas of the fire have received precipitation.”

The fire’s estimated size had decreased, from 81,139 hectares on Friday, to 80,745 today.

“The decrease in estimated size is a result of more accurate mapping along the northern flank of the fire,” the BCWS explained.

The fire, which started July 13th northeast of Merritt, is still classified as out of control.

On the fire’s east flank, which is in the Westside Road area, crews and equipment will continue to defend pre-established containment lines above communities and protect structures. Structure protection personnel are continuing to action hot spots and mop-up around impacted interface areas.

“The Drought Code in this area of the fire is resulting in incredibly deep burning forest fuels making it difficult to bring this area to full extinguishment,” the Wildfire Service said. “Heavy equipment continues to work on re-establishing containment lines from the Terrace Mountain fire (2009) to tie into the guard at Stuart Lake.”

Heavy equipment is also working along the Bouleau Forest Service Road towards Bouleau Lake to open up the tree canopy along the road.

On the northeast flank, south of Glenemma, crews continued with routine hand ignitions to secure the edge of the containment line, south of Irish Creek Road/west of Westside Road on Friday.

Heavy equipment and crews are also constructing guard between Irish Creek and McGregor Creek to hold the line closer to the fire perimeter.

by Pete McIntyre

UPDATE: Crews making progress on guards and hot spots on White Rock Lake fire; orders and alerts still in place

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