Photo Credit: Contributed
Update: Officials have confirmed that 29 homes were lost in the Rock Creek Wildfire. Updates here.
Original Story:
The dissipating smoke on Saturday allowed fire officials to upgrade the estimate of the Rock Creek fire’s size.
The new, more accurate estimate of the blaze is 3,750 hectares. Fire officials remind the public that the wildfire is uncontained and extremely dangerous. People who enter the evacuation area are putting themselves and firefighters at risk, as the area has active wildfire, “danger trees” whose root systems are weakened by fire activity, heavy equipment use, and downed power lines.
Photo Credit: Contributed
Highway 3 was finally reopened at 10:30 p.m. Saturday night after being closed for several days for the blaze. The section east of Osoyoos to Midway has a 50 km/h speed limit, and motorists are asked to watch for debris on the road.
Fire officials were concerned Saturday night about significant wind gusts that could increase fire behaviour and growth.
Photo Credit: Contributed
The structural losses in this blaze were said to be “fairly significant” by a spokesperson from Emergency Management BC, who said that more than a dozen structures were lost. The actual numbers have yet to be confirmed, as assessments were ongoing Saturday and owners were being notified.
Photo Credit: Facebook
On Friday, it was confirmed that the family operating Rock Creek Riverside Campground lost their home to the wildfire.
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