FORT ST. JOHN -- The largest wildfire in British Columbia’s history is once again burning out of control after a dry lightening strike hit a holdover hotspot of the Donnie Creek Wildfire.
The fire is burning out of control near the Beaton River and has grown from three to just over 3500 hectares in size.
On May 10th, 2024, it was discovered that a hotspot had breached the surface of the 2023 holdover fire, leading to a monitored response being undertaken to control the fire.
As of today, there are 145 personnel on scene battling the blaze including five unit crews, an initial attack, a paraattack crew, and helicopters, according to the BC Wildfire Service.
“Priorities are to respond to new fire starts/emerging flare-ups quickly to achieve Initial Attack success, continue direct attack where safe, tying containment lines in with each other, and actioning the hotspots detected in recent scans,” said the Prince George Fire Centre.
The service also confirmed the fire is not posing a threat to structures.
The renewed fire prompted an Evacuation Alert by the Blueberry River First Nations due to heavy smoke last month.
Before being brought under control in October of 2023, the wildfire grew to over 600,000 hectares in size, prompting area restrictions, and making it the largest recorded wildfire in B.C.’s history.
Correction:
A previous version of this story used the word "reignited" to describe new fire growth that breached the perimeter of the holdover Donnie Creek Wildfire.
CJDC has clarified with the BC Wildfire Service that the fire has not infact "reignited" but was burning under frozen ground. On May 10th, it was discovered that a hotspot breached the surface causing an above-ground burn.
