All evacuation orders for the Hedges Butte and Skaha Creek wildfires near Penticton have been rescinded to all clear.
The Penticton Indian Band Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) said they were pleased to report that there were no properties within the Penticton Indian Band jurisdiction on alert.
The PIB EOC will be standing down until Tuesday, Sept. 7.
“The Penticton Indian Band Chief and Council and EOC send a heartfelt thank you to the BC Wildfire, Penticton Indian Band Natural Resource and Penticton Indian Band for all your hard work in keeping our community safe.”
As of this weekend, BC Wildfire has declared the Skaha Creek fire as being held.
The evacuation alert issued by the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen Emergency Operations Centre (RDOS EOC) on Sept. 3, for the area of Farleigh Lake in Electoral Area I, has been rescinded to all clear, the RDOS announced Sunday.
Penticton city is standing down its EOC activated in support of the Skaha Creek Wildfire.
“We are very grateful to BC Wildfire Service and the Penticton Indian Band for their quick and effective response,” said Penticton EOC director Donny Van Dyk. “We also want to thank the community for their cooperation and support during the fire.”
The Hedges Butte fire is still considered a wildfire of note by BC Wildfire Service but hasn’t seen growth in the past two days. The fire was first discovered on Friday, Sept. 3 and is estimated to be 189 hectares and size, smaller than the original estimate of 236 ha. It is located 12 kilometres southwest of Penticton along Green Mountain Road and Farleigh Lake. The cause is currently under investigation.
Fire behaviour is expected to be minimal as weather conditions are expected to help crews make progress on the containment of the fire, said BC Wildfire Service in an update on Sunday, Sept. 5. Crews will continue to work around the east side of the fire with suppression activities. Helicopters will be supporting ground crews with bucketing, and a guard is being constructed with heavy equipment.
Fifty-one personnel, 15 pieces of heavy equipment, an incident management team and eight helicopters are working to contain the fire. Air tankers and skimmers will continue to support the incident, if necessary.
READ MORE: More evacuation alerts as Hedges Butte wildfire grows to 230 hectares
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