Update: Sept. 16, 11 a.m.
Although it grew to 18 hectares overnight, the Shingle Creek fire west of Penticton was 80 per cent containment as of Tuesday morning, according to Kayla Pepper, a spokeswoman for the B.C. Wildfire Management Branch.
She said 26 personnel worked the blaze at the height of the battle with assistance from the Penticton Indian Band Fire Department.
Update: Sept. 15, 2014, 6 p.m.
Officials say the Shingle Creek blaze on the Penticton Indian Reserve at least doubled in size this afternoon as fire activity calmed somewhat.
B.C. Wildfire Management Branch spokeswoman Kayla Pepper said as of 6 p.m. the fire area hadn’t yet been mapped, but was estimated at 10 to 15 hectares.
She added that the fire is now considered rank two, meaning it’s burning on the ground.That’s an improvement from rank three, meaning it was candling in treetops, when it was reported around 3 p.m.
Pepper said aircraft are laying down retardant around the blaze to assist ground crews, which include 14 firefighters from the branch, with 12 more on the way, and members of the Penticton Indian Band Fire Department.
Meanwhile, no evacuations are currently being considered in the area, according to Dale Kronebusch, emergency services supervisor for the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen.
Kronebusch said the blaze is not threatening any homes and is burning in the vicinity of the area that was scorched by the Apex Mountain Fire in July.
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Posted: 4 p.m.
Air support was expected to arrive late Monday afternoon to help battle a wildfire in the Shingle Creek Road area near the Penticton Indian Reserve.
B.C. Wildfire Management Branch spokeswoman Kelsey Winter said the fire was estimated at about five hectares as of 3:30 p.m., not long after it was reported.
“Trees are candling. It’s creating quite a bit of smoke, so the fire is highly visible,” said Winter.
She said the branch has nine firefighters on the ground who are being assisted by the Penticton Indian Band Fire Department, with an air tanker and a heli-tanker expected in the area soon.
Winter said the cause of the fire is not yet known.
