Thousands of people have been forced to evacuate as more than 100 active wildfires burn across B.C., with the province remaining under a state of emergency on Monday. There has been “significant losses of homes and property,” according to B.C. Premier David Eby. Nearly half of the 105 wildfires are burning out of control, including in the Summerland area, where the Bald Range fire claimed the life of an 80-year-old woman and led to evacuation orders for roughly 20,000 others. “The hours and days ahead will be difficult. The Bald Range fire remains extremely active and significant challenges remain,” Eby said in a statement Saturday, following the “devastating news” coming out of South Okanagan. “Since first reported early (Friday) evening, the Bald Range wildfire has grown rapidly as winds intensified, pushing into the Summerland area and affecting communities throughout the surrounding valleys.” The Bald Range fire is one of four fires of note in B.C. Across the province, 42 evacuation orders — which urge residents to leave the area immediately — are in effect, while 51 alerts, warning people to be ready to leave on short notice, have also been issued. Follow for live updates: Bald Range wildfire damage still being assessed Provincial officials say the Bald Range wildfire near Summerland, B.C., grew by about one to one and a half kilometres along its northwestern and southern flanks overnight. The fire, which has destroyed homes and forced thousands to flee to shelters, measured approximately 156 square kilometres on Monday morning. The B.C. Wildfire Service says better visibility is expected through the day with shifting winds, but thunderstorm activity is possible to the north of the fire zone, near Kamloops. The agency says air tankers completed retardant drops Sunday before poor visibility grounded the planes. Eight helicopters were also assigned to the blaze Monday, with air tankers and water skimmers providing support as conditions allow. Authorities are still assessing the extent of the fire damage in the area. “Confirmed information about structural impacts will be shared by the appropriate regional districts and local authorities as it becomes available,” the wildfire service said. Five evacuation orders remain in effect, including for the municipality of Summerland, while four areas are under evacuation alert, including the districts of Penticton and Peachland. Todd Coyne, journalist, CTVNewsVancouer.ca Chief of Penticton Indian Band says alerts create ‘concern and panic’ The expanded evacuation alert has created a “lot of concern and panic,” Chief of Penticton Indian Band Greg Gabriel told CTV News Channel on Monday. “Our evacuation alert right now — we only have five homes for now that have been placed under evacuation order. The rest remained under evacuation alerts,” Gabriel said, adding that the smoky conditions in the past couple of days have been “challenging” for elderly residents and people with medical conditions. According to the Chief of Penticton Indian Band, the smoke from the burning wildfires is preventing air support and air attacks and is “always concerning.” The community has “enough” firefighting equipment and personnel who are supported by the B.C. Wildfire Services and surrounding areas, which Gabriel described as “amazing.” “We’re always keeping a close eye on the fires throughout the day and throughout the night,” he said, adding that the wildfires he’s experienced in the past have been “different” than now. “The climate change, the dryness we’re experiencing over the years … it just increases the volatility of these fires,” Gabriel said. Aarjavee Raaj, journalist, CTVNews.ca Woman who lost home to 2021 wildfires braces family for evacuation A woman who was forced to evacuate the Okanagan Indian Band Reserve said that while her home remains safe, many of her relatives have lost their own. “The fire still remains (in) like a really good hotspot above our house. It’s about four kilometres away, but our place is still there right now,” Tiffany Wilson told CTV News Channel on Monday. “So we came to Penticton to get away from the fires, and now we’re on an alert here.” The Penticton Indian Band Reserve, where Wilson and many evacuees are sheltering, is now under its own ”Urgent” level wildfire alert. Wilson, who lost her home in a 2021 due to the White Rock Creek Fire, is familiar with evacuation precautions. “We’ve packed all of my aunts and my sisters and their family’s important things like their documents, their medications, and clothes for a few days. We have water with us in case something happens with the water,” she said. Though Wilson said the Summerland fires are reminiscent of the 2021 White Rock Creek Fire, she added that first responders and the efforts of the Penticton Indian Band are keeping her hopeful. “I really feel that there’s like hope for this fire. There’s a lot of boots on the ground here, especially community members,” she said. Kayla Thompson, Journalist, CTVNews.ca Lightning a concern for crews B.C. wildfire crews are bracing for lightning-caused wildfire starts. There’s “high potential” for such starts particularly in the central Interior and the Okanagan because of limited precipitation and dry lightning, an updated provincial situation report on the B.C. Wildfire Dashboard said Monday. “Elevated temperatures and heightened wind gusts will continue to linger in the Okanagan and southeastern regions of B.C., which can increase fire behaviour,” the update added. During hot, dry weather, new ignitions can “establish and spread quickly,” the report said. Crews are especially concerned about smaller fires in steep terrain, where wind and slope alignment “can rapidly accelerate fire growth.” While fires may appear manageable under these conditions, the report said, such blazes can quickly transition to higher intensity behaviour. Ethan Morneau, national digital producer, CTV National News Defence minister says military ‘prepared to assist’ National Defence Minister David McGuinty said the military is prepared to assist with the British Columbia wildfire response if called. Speaking at a news conference in Ottawa on Monday, McGuinty said the B.C. government has asked Eleanor Olszewski, the minister of emergency management, for federal assistance after declaring a provincewide state of emergency. “That’s the appropriate channel through which provinces make the ask,” McGuinty told CTV News. “It’s now really a question of assessing hour by hour, as we have been doing all weekend, most of last night, to see what the status is.” At least one death has been attributed to the Bald Range wildfire that has forced thousands to flee their homes near Summerland. “The Canadian Armed Forces are at standby—are in direct, constant contact with our government operations centre, our emergency preparedness folks, the B.C. government, their officials,” McGuinty said. “So, we have not yet received a formal request for assistance directed from emergency preparedness to the Canadian Forces. Should we do so, we are prepared to assist.” Todd Coyne, journalist, CTVNewsVancouer.ca Feds to provide assistance ‘for as long as it takes,’ minister says A request for federal assistance to provide shelter and accommodations for people who have been forced to flee their homes has been approved, according to Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski. “As a result, I have tasked federal officials, led by the Government Operations Centre at Public Safety Canada, to work with the province to ensure support reaches those who need it most,” Olszewski said in a post on X Sunday. Thanking firefighters, first responders and volunteers, she said she approved B.C.’s request on Saturday night, adding that the federal government will support the province and those impacted by the wildfires “for as long as it takes.” Ethan Morneau, national digital producer, CTV National News Summerland residents concerned about returning to town: Mayor The stories coming from residents evacuated to Penticton following an explosive wildfire that claimed the life of an 80-year-old resident were described as “harrowing” by Summerland, B.C., Mayor Doug Holmes. Holmes told CTV Your Morning early Monday that as far as he knew, the fires were still burning out of control, and the town remains shut while the B.C. Wildfire Services tackle the blaze. “This fire moves so fast that we just didn’t get any warning. Normally, when they see a fire coming towards the community, you get what they call an alert (to) tell them it might be possible that you might have to be evacuated, so pack your bag and get ready,” he said. “We didn’t get the alerts for this. We just we were just told to leave.” He said the residents are concerned about when they can return to their homes. Discussions about re-entry into the town are underway, the mayor said, but there are multiple safety checks to complete before they can return safely. “The problem is that once the fire is under control, we can’t just all go home because we need to make sure the town is safe. We have to make sure infrastructure is safe,” Holmes said. “There’s going to be power lines all over the place. The water supply is contaminated. We know there’ll be pockets of hotspots here and there, and so, that’s going to take some time to go neighbourhood by neighbourhood to make sure that it’s safe to return.” Aarjavee Raaj, journalist, CTVNewsVancouver.ca Summerland wildfire claims 80-year-old’s life Mounties said an 80-year-old woman has died as a result of the Bald Range fire in Summerland, B.C.According to Penticton RCMP, she was attempting to evacuate with a family member from her home in the Meadow Valley area when she died suddenly. Another evacuee attempting to flee from the rapidly growing fire saw the woman and reported her death just after 1 a.m. on Saturday, police said.“Officers are working closely and providing full supports to the impacted family, who are asking for privacy at this time,” Supt. Beth McAndie said, in a statement. Mounties believe the woman’s death to be a result of the wildfire, but the B.C. Coroners’ Service is investigating further. James Paracy, journalist, CTVNewsVancouver.ca. Read the full article ‘Doing their best’: Executive director of GlobalMedic Local crews “are doing their best,” they need better equipment and apparatus to fight the fires in B.C. on the ground, Rahul Singh, executive director of GlobalMedic, told CTV News Channel Monday. “Those departments are not really well-equipped for this because often they have a lot of people and limited apparatus,” Singh said. “What we’ve been doing, is trying to unlock and unpack their existing capacity by giving them more fire trucks.” GlobalMedic is distributing 1,000 litre fire skid units to convert pickup trucks into firefighting trucks, which can help crews fight spot fires effectively, he added. So far, 170 fire skid units have been given out to the province. “We just got to get out there and get those spot fires out, because if they continue, they’re going to grow. They’re going to go together, and then they’re going to wipe out the town,” Singh said, adding that the fire crews tackling them are doing everything they can. “Getting these things under control is really about trying to just meet them head on, and then containing them,” he said. Aarjavee Raaj, journalist, CTVNewsVancouver.ca
