Firefighting crews working on the McDougall Creek wildfire are preparing for another round of planned ignitions in anticipation of an upcoming warming trend.
According to the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS), an “upper ridge” is arriving on Wednesday and will be bringing temperatures in the mid to upper 20s, which will cause humidity levels to drop to the low 20% range by Thursday and Friday.
To add to slightly challenging conditions, winds are forecast to remain light with strong gusts in the afternoon and, unfortunately, there is no rain in the forecast for the Central Okanagan.
This will likely cause the current rank one and two fire behaviour (smouldering ground fire) to increase.
“Today, September 12, crews will continue working on mop up objectives, patrols and extinguishing of hotspots along the west and south flanks of the fire in addition to the continued construction of guard and contingency lines,” says the BCWS.
“There is the potential for a planned aerial ignition to occur this afternoon and/or tomorrow in the Hidden Creek area of the McDougall Creek Wildfire.”
The planned burn will remove about 150 hectares of unburnt fuel that has the potential to burn on its own in a more active way.
Due to the steep terrain, this will likely be done by an aerial ignition.
Smoke will be visible from surrounding communities.
These planned ignitions are meant to secure fire guards and containment lines while giving firefighters a safer place to work from.
Evacuation update for West Kelowna, Westbank First Nation properties
As the firefighting efforts continue, more evacuation orders and alerts were lifted Monday evening.
However, many properties remain on evacuation order in the hardest hit areas and the Central Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre will be hosting an online information session to support those affected.
The session, which takes place on Tuesday from 2 pm to 3 pm, will also offer information to those returning home.
If you can’t watch the live feed, not to fret, a recording will be available on the Regional District of Central Okanagan’s YouTube account.
