Rail service halted, evacuation alert issued due to wildfire near Yale, B.C.

The BC Wildfire Service provided this image of a blaze burning near Yale on Aug. 24, 2025.

An evacuation alert has been issued due to an out-of-control wildfire burning in B.C.’s Fraser Canyon.

The Sailor Bar fire sparked late Saturday roughly seven kilometres north of Yale and had grown to an estimated 120 hectares by Sunday afternoon, according to the BC Wildfire Service.

“The fire is burning in steep, inoperable and difficult to access terrain. Responder safety is the number one priority, and this area poses significant safety challenges,” the agency said.

“Multiple aviation and ground resources are responding. It is suspected to be human caused.”

Related: Full coverage of B.C.’s 2025 wildfire season

The Fraser Valley Regional District issued an evacuation alert for the area between Yale and Spuzzum for properties on both sides of the Fraser River, warning residents to be ready to leave at a moment’s notice.

The fire is highly visible from Highway 1and has forced the closure of CN Rail tracks through the area.

“No other infrastructure is immediately threatened,” the BCWS’ website said.

The blaze broke out as the wildfires service warned a “prolonged heat wave” would be causing potentially volatile conditions in much of the province.

“These hot and dry conditions are rapidly drying out forest fuels and increasing fire danger,” the agency wrote in a social media update.

“Holdover fires from lightning strikes smouldering since early August could also start to smoke and ignite. Wildfires that are currently burning may become more active and smoke may become more visible.”