Update: 11:00 p.m.
The wildfire on the east side Okanagan Lake in Vernon is now estimated to be 10 hectares in size.
BC Wildfire Service updated its dashboard Thursday (April 1) evening. The cause of the fire is listed as unknown, but earlier reports indicated it was originally a planned burn at approximately 4:30 p.m., which grew in windy conditions throughout the evening.
More information will be shared as it becomes available.
Two other wildfires sparked Thursday in the Kamloops area, one of them now 22 hectares.
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Wildfire smoke coming from the hillside across Okanagan Lake has swept over Vernon Thursday afternoon.
The fire started as a planned burn that blew out of control on Westside Road. BX-Swan Lake firefighters were on standby but cannot respond because the fire is out of their service area, within B.C. Forestry jurisdiction.
Westside Road resident Karin Marshall says flames could be seen across from the public works yard, with two emergency vehicles attempting to make their way up a steep and narrow road around 5:30 p.m.
“There are lots of flames in areas,” Marshall said, adding she believes the road nearest to the fire turns into a driveway.
“There is a farm house close to the lake and the fire is above it.”
The fire has not yet appeared on the BC Wildfire Services database.
More information will be shared as it becomes available.
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