The Lower Blueberry Creek fire near Seymour Arm (photo courtesy of the B.C. Wildfire Service)

By Liam Verster

Wildfire Activity

Firefighting efforts focused on the Shuswap area Friday

Jul 19, 2024 | 5:15 PM

Local wildfire suppression efforts were focused on the Shuswap region Friday, particularly on the north ends of the lake.

The Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) said the B.C. Wildfire Service dispatched two initial attack teams, four smoke jumpers (firefighters who parachute into fire areas) ,and a bucketing helicopter to the Dasnier’s Bay area near Seymour Arm where the Lower Blueberry Creek fire was burning.

Together with assistance from a CSRD sturcture protection team, the firefighters were able to keep the fire from spreading, and at last update it was still 0.8 hectares in size.

The CSRD added six B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) skimmers and one bird-dog plane were also attacking the 1.5 hectare Astney wildfire in the area Friday.

Despite suppression efforts through the day, those wildfires were still classified as Out of Control as of Friday afternoon.

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A helicopter also helped with suppressing the Upper Griffin Mountain fire Friday, which at last update was classified as Being Held.

Four wildfires, one west of Mabel Lake, one south of that lake, and one north of Sugar Lake, were reclassified as Under Control after first being reported as Out of Control Friday morning.

Along with the two fires on the north end of the Shuswap Lake, there were six fires in the Shuswap and Okanagan still classified as Out of Control as of Friday afternoon.

The largest of these fires was the 19.2 hectare wildfire at Mara Mountain. The B.C. Wildfire Service had previously told Vernon Matters that resources were not assigned to the blaze due to it being located in steep terrain that firefighting crews would not be able to access, though did add the situation would be continuously monitored.

There was one fire located east of Mabel Lake and three fires east of Sugar Lake Friday, and while three of them were under one hectare in size, the Outlet Creek Forest Service Road fire was estimated at 10 hectares in size. However, the BCWS did not have any resources assigned to that blaze.

There was also a new fire that sparked southeast of Echo Lake Park and the Creighton Valley area Friday.

At last update that fire was four hectares in size, but did not have any resources assigned to it.

All the aforementioned wildfires were suspected of being caused by lightning strikes.