Forest area burned during the Bush Creek East wildfire (photo courtesy of the Columbia Shuswap Regional District)

By Liam Verster

Downgrading Evacuation Orders

Shuswap residents expected to return home Wednesday

Sep 5, 2023 | 11:35 AM

Residents displaced by the wildfire in the Shuswap will be able to return to their homes Wednesday.

The Columbia Shuswap Regional District stated Tuesday that residents in the Lower East Adams Lake area will be allowed to go home after 7 p.m. September 6.

The CSRD said access via Holding Road will only be available for the area between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. daily until further notice, meaning public access will be available from the evening until the morning and closed during the day.

The road closure is intended to allow for B.C. Hydro crews to safely work on restoring power to the area.

The CSRD stated Monday that residents in other areas affected by the Bush Creek East wildfire would be able to return home Wednesday. As per Monday’s update, the communities of Magna Bay and Celista will see the evacuation orders downgraded to alerts at 2 p.m., and the orders for Scotch Creek and Lee Creek will be downgraded at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

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The CSRD reminds residents returning to their properties to be cautious of hazards.

On Monday, the Regional District stated the area affected by the Bush Creek East wildfire may have created danger trees, which can fall without warning, and ash pits, which are holes in the ground filled with ash and potentially hot embers. The air may also be affected by hazardous ash or smoke particles.

Structures burned by the fire may have numerous hazards as well, including toxic dusts from asbestos, sharp objects like broken glass and metal, exposed wires, and unstable objects including walls.

The CSRD reminds people to be cautious of these hazards and stated nobody should enter any burned structures or burned forest areas.

People should also assume the water is not safe to drink until testing has been complete.

More information on what people should know when returning home following an evacuation can be found here.

by Liam Verster

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