The Kiskatinaw River Wildfire has been designated as the first ‘Wildfire of Note’ this year by the BC Wildfire Service. The fire has exploded in size to 4,554 hectares and is burning out of control 18 kilometres for Kelly Lake.
Shelley Calliou of the Kelly Lake Cree Nation said it was “surreal” how fast a wildfire threatening the community in northeast British Columbia moved.
She said she was told by the RCMP at 6 p.m. Thursday that she had a two-hour window to evacuate, with the Kiskatinaw River fire 18 kilometres southwest of the unincorporated community of Kelly Lake.
“Within those two hours, it moved 10 kilometres. It’s fast-moving,” said Calliou on Friday from Dawson Creek, B.C., where she said about 70 people had fled, about 80 kilometres north.
The BC Wildfire Service said firefighters caught a bit of a break Friday as winds across the region have died down. Wind gusts of 25 kilometres per hour were recorded, compared 60kmh gusts on Thursday.
“The wind hasn’t been as strong and as a result, that’s why we have seen the fire behavior gone down and the growth of the fire hasn’t been as extreme as we saw yesterday,” said Jeromy Corrigan, an Information Officer with the BC Wildfire Service.
In fact, Corrigon points out that as the wind has died down, it has stopped the fire from moving for now, which is welcome news for the residents that were forced to flee their homes.
The wildfire service said that up to 65 firefighters are on the ground and are being assisted by air tankers and helicopters from above.
Heavy machinery is working around the clock to build a guard around the fire. While structure protection crews are on scene, the Peace River Regional District said that so far, they have not been notified of any buildings that have been destroyed.
No thunderstorms are forecast for the weekend and firefighters can also expected seasonal temperatures over the next few days. However, because of the on-going drought conditions, they aren’t seeing the humidity rise at night, which helps fighting the fire.
The MLA for Peace River South is praising the efforts of the firefighters and those working to help evacuees. “Please stay safe, please co-operate with the authorities and please stay out of the danger zone,” said Neufeld.
Neufeld said that there have been significant resources that have been dedicated to fight the fire and that more resources are on their way.
The Peace River Regional District issued an Evacuation Order on Thursday afternoon for homes around Kelly Lake and areas north of Campbell Lake, west of Tent Lake, south of Twin Lakes, and east to the Alberta border.
It’s important to note that Peace River Regional District’s Orders and Alerts do not affect First Nations communities or municipalities as they issue their own.
Census data suggests Kelly Lake has a population of about 75 residents and the district said people should evacuate to Dawson Creek. The Kelly Lake Cree Nation says it has 800 citizens although they do not all live in that area.
The wildfire service said that smoke from the fire may be visible from Dawson Creek and Tumbler Ridge.
The fire is burning close to the Pembina Steeprock gas processing facility and Highway 52 E, also known as the Heritage Highway. Highway 52E, between Kelly Lake and Kiskatinaw Forest Service Road (Sunderman Pit) is closed. Motorists are being urged to check Drive BC.
For updates this weekend on the Evacuation Orders and Alerts, head to the Peace River Regional District’s website.
With files from The Canadian Press
