UPDATE: 4:25 p.m.
While fire activity has decreased on Mount Law, Wednesday night’s flare-up did cause some damage to abandoned outbuildings and fencing on properties outside the fire protection area, emergency officials say.
Central Okanagan Emergency Operations said significant progress was made today, Aug. 26, in securing fireguards. The fire is still estimated at 930 hectares. The increase in size is due to more accurate mapping and not increased fire activity.
“The events of last night are a startling example of just how unpredictable wildfires can be,” said EOC director Brian Reardon.
Evacuation orders remain in place for two properties, 4713 MacKinnon Road and 3250 Highway 97, as does an evacuation alert. A map of the affected areas is available at cordemergency.ca.
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ORIGINAL:
The Mount Law wildfire burning near West Kelowna saw increased fire activity due to wind on Wednesday night and has grown to 930 hectares in size, according to officials.
BC Wildfire Service said in a Thursday morning update that crews conducted planned ignitions along the Okanagan Connector and up the east. However, a small spot fire occurred in the area to the south of the highway, and crews are now working to round this up.
“We also had a small spot fire start on the eastern side of drought creek and crews are currently conducting (a) direct attack on this area,” said BC Wildfire.
“Large air tankers may be used throughout the day to assist with containing the spread of this spot to the east.”
READ MORE: Hand ignitions planned for Mount Law wildfire burning near Okanagan Connector
Central Okanagan Emergency Operations said that personnel from BC Wildfire and emergency crews from West Kelowna and Peachland have been actively fighting the fire since 2 a.m.
“Helicopters are currently supporting crews on the ground. Additional air support is expected with the goal of maintaining established fire guards.”
A westbound lane on Highway 97C is closed to traffic, but the highway is open.
There are currently 88 BC Wildfire firefighters on-site, supported by 11 pieces of heavy equipment, five helicopters and 34 support staff, which includes members of BC Wildfire’s incident management team.
READ MORE: PHOTOS: White Rock Lake wildfire devastates North Westside homes
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