The fires burning in the Shuswap and Okanagan as of the morning of Friday, July 19 (Image courtesy of the B.C. Wildfire Service)

By Liam Verster

Wildfire Activity

A dozen wildfires burning in Okanagan, Shuswap

Jul 19, 2024 | 10:41 AM

UPDATE 11:20 a.m. July 19

The wildfire south of Kingfisher is now considered Under Control, and the Jack Creek Road fire has been re-classifies as Being Held.

The other 12 fires are still Out of Control.

— Original Story —

The Okanagan and Shuswap have seen over a dozen fires ignite in the areas over the past 24 hours, with most of them still relatively small as of last update.

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As of 10:30 a.m. Friday, July 19, there were a total of 13 active fires within the two areas. Only one, a 90m² (0.009 hectare) spot fire located near Mabel Lake south of Kingfisher, was classified as ‘being held’, while the rest were considered out of control.

The Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) said fire crews were actioning some of the fires that were burning in the area. The location of the fires, from north to south, and the responses as of the latest updates, were:

• Shuswap:
  • Lower Blueberry Creek: 0.8 hectare fire east of Seymour Arm, being actioned by a B.C. Wildfire Service bucket helicopter, and two initial attack crews, four smoke jumpers (firefighters than parachute into the area), with assistance from the Shuswap Emergency Program’s Structure Protection Team
  • McNomee Creek: 0.3 hectare fire north of Seymour Arm with no resources assigned
  • Anstey Ridge: a 1.5 hectare wildfire approximately 32 kilometres north of Sicamous, with the CSRD saying a bucket helicopter and RapAttack crew (rappelling firefighter team) assigned to the fire
  • Four Mile Creek: 0.5 hectare fire located north of Sicamous with a bucketing helicopter assigned
  • Upper Griffin Mountain: 90m² fire near Highway 1 between Sicamous and Revelstoke, with the CSRD saying a bucket helicopter was assigned to the fire
  • Lower Griffin Mountain: 0.44 hectare fire near Highway 1 between Sicamous and Revelstoke, with the CSRD saying a bucket helicopter was assigned to the fire
  • Yard Creek: 90m² fire north of Kingfisher Creek Ecological Reserve with no resources assigned
  • Mara Mountain: 19.2 hecatre fire southeast of Sicamous with no resources assigned
  • Cottonwood Creek: 0.42 hectare wildfire on the east side of Mable Lake with no resources assigned
• North Okanagan:
  • Jack Creek Road: 0.4 hectare wildfire south of Mabel Lake and west of Sugar Lake with no resources assigned
  • Sitkum Creek: 0.5 hectare wildfire east of Sugar Lake with no resources assigned
  • Outlet Creek Fire Service Road: 10 hectare wildfire east of Sugar Lake with no resources assigned
• Central Okanagan:
  • Unnamed wildfire east of Ellison Lake: a 90m² fire located along Postill Road with no resources assigned

The B.C. Wildifre Service noted all the above fires were suspected of being caused by lightning strikes.

The BCWS and the CSRD advise people to prepare themselves for possible impacts of wildfires by having a ‘grab-and-go bag’ readily available. Details on what should be kept in those bags can be seen at the Prepared B.C. website.

Anyone who sees smoke or fire is urged to report it to the BCWS by calling toll-free at 1-800-663-5555 or by dialing *5555 on a cell phone.