Progress is being made on containing the Beavervale Creek fire near the Bombi Summit southeast of Castlegar.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but was first discovered Saturday, July 10.
The fire has been held to 35 hectares for several days now.
It’s status has been downgraded and it is no longer considered a fire of note.
On Wednesday, July 14, fire behaviour was observed to be smouldering ground fire with little to no open flame.
Earlier in the week, fire crews contained several spot or excursion fires related to the main fire. One of those excursion fires was near the power lines that run through the area.
On July 14, fire crews were reduced to 25 firefighters and one helicopter.
According to the Southeast Fire Centre, containment lines are now wrapped around the entire perimeter of the main fire. Those containment lines are a combination of hand-built fuel free overlaid with hose and machine-built fire guard.
The excursion to the east has also been wrapped in hose to keep it wet.
Ground crews will be expanding the perimeter wet line (a line of water sprayed on the ground that acts as a temporary control line) to 20 feet. In addition to the wet line, crews will be actively patrolling, looking for smoke and hot spots.
One helicopter will be used to patrol and look for smoke or excursions, but bucketing activity is no longer required. Heavy equipment is no longer required at the site.
On Monday and Tuesday there were about 30 firefighters, several helicopters, and five pieces of heavy equipment assigned to the fire. Over the weekend, water bombers were also used.
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betsy.kline@castlegarnews.comLike us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter
