CJDC-TV

Highway 77 reopens after wildfires bring motorists to a halt

Jeff Cunha
Published Wednesday, July 10, 2024 3:32PM PDT

Smoke from a wildfire is shown crossing a road in British Columbia in this undated handout image provided by the BC Wildfire Service. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-BC Wildfire Service (FILE)

Text:

FORT NELSON -- A large stretch of Highway 77 was closed today due to the threat posed by increased wildfire activity.

According to DriveBC, the highway was closed to all traffic from the Highway 97 intersection to the Northwest Territory border.

The closure impacting both directions of the highway for nearly 138 kilometres.

A number of wildfires in the Fort Nelson area leading to the closure, with two out of control wildfires sparked on July 1st merging with the Patry Creek wildfire leading to a larger blaze.

The Patry Creek wildfire is still burning out of control after the BC Wildfire Service announced a change in its status last Friday.

It is currently measured at over 73,000 hectares in size.

The road reopened shortly after 1:00 p.m. today with DriveBC warning motorists not to stop, and to drive with caution due to possible limited visibility.