Wildfire update: New fires in Okanagan, Shuswap Lake fire ‘being held’

Aug 5, 2020 | 9:27 AM Pete McIntyre

The B.C. Wildfire Service is reporting 34 active fires in the province today (Aug. 5), with the Kamloops Fire Centre (KFC) the busiest among the five fire centres.

There are 13 active fires in the KFC including the largest, the Dry Lake Fire, northwest of Princeton at 21 hectares and 43 properties on evacuation alert.

The Marble Point Fire 8.5 km’s north of Sicamous along Shuswap Lake is now being held at 1.8 hectares despite steep and challenging terrain for fire crews to work in.

UPDATE: Personnel on site have now estimated the Marble Point wildfire (K40921), north of #Sicamous, to be 1.8 hectares in size. The fire is in steep and cliffy terrain which has been a challenge to crews. pic.twitter.com/3RJEbYtjhe

— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 5, 2020

And good news for West Kelowna residents as the Rose Valley Dam fire which broke out Sunday, is now under control at 3 hectares.

There is a new wildfire west of Peachland, on East Trepanier Road, that is a quarter of hectare in size.

**OPEN** #BCHwy97C and Trepanier Road, #Peachland forest fire now cleared and highway is fully open to traffic. Thank you to all our essential workers for all their hard work! @DriveBC @DriveBC_TOK @AimRoads #essentialworkers4u @TranBC #conezonebc pic.twitter.com/1ER3QfEfjY

— AIMRoads (@AimRoads) August 5, 2020

There is also a new fire on Bear Creek Forest Service Road, northwest of West Kelowna, listed at 0.40 of a hectare.

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Aug. 4

The B.C. Wildfire Service is responding to a wildfire located 8.5 kilometres north of Sicamous near Marble Point along Shuswap Lake.

The wildfire is estimated to be one hectare in size.

Aerial resources may be visible from Sicamous, Shuswap Lake and surrounding areas. Currently, 25 personnel are responding to this fire and no structures are threatened at this time.

The Wildfire Service is asking boaters to stay away from the fire site as its interfering with firefighting aircraft on Shuswap Lake.

“This is dangerous, both to the public and to our personnel, and interferes with critical firefighting operations. Please stay away from active wildfire sites on the ground, and on the water,” said the service.

We’ve had issues with boaters interfering with firefighting aircraft on Shuswap Lake. This is dangerous, both to the public and to our personnel, and interferes with critical firefighting operations. Please stay away from active wildfire sites on the ground, and on the water. pic.twitter.com/yxiQOO7v7Y

— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 4, 2020