McDougall Creek wildfire remains out of control at over 13,500 hectares

The BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) and local fire departments continue to respond to the McDougall Creek wildfire, which is currently estimated at 13,712 hectares in size and still classified as out of control.

There are currently 11 helicopters, 262 firefighters, 29 operational staff, six structure protection personnel, 48 pieces of heavy equipment and an incident management team allocated by BCWS for this wildfire, and BC Hydro technicians and the RCMP are also working throughout the day.

Less than one millimetre of precipitation has been received over the past 24 hours, and the wildfire is still actively burning along the west and southwest flanks.

In West Kelowna, safe access and egress routes for ground personnel have been established into the Powers Creek drainage area.

Rappel crews completed helipad construction north of Powers Creek Drainage, and heavy equipment worked along the Smith Creek Road to ensure it was safe for ground crews to traverse. This will allow crews to safely engage in direct attack methods above Glenrosa, according to Central Okanagan Emergency Operations (CORD).

In Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO) Electoral Area West, hand crews are mopping up from the 11-kilometre marker on the Bear Main Forest Service Road, working towards Hidden Creek Forest Service Road, as well as working from Bald Range to Terrace Road.

As conditions allow, all remaining fuels between the fire’s edge and the machine guard will be removed by hand crews.

Crews will utilize small-scale hand ignition operations to clean up the fire’s edge and remove any small pockets of fuel that remain.

West Kelowna Fire Department and RDCO Fire Services are in regular contact with BCWS to ensure appropriate resources are allocated to the wildfire at all times.

As of 7 am today, 463 properties are under evacuation order and 20,053 properties are under evacuation alert.

Of those on evacuation order, 283 are within RDCO Electoral Area West, 142 are within the City of West Kelowna, and 38 are within Westbank First Nation.

In the last 24 hours, the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) downgraded the evacuation order for 24 properties in the RDCO Electoral Area West, between La Casa heading south to 4017 Westside Road.

The areas hardest hit by the fires will be on evacuation order longer.

Crews are working to remove hazards, restore infrastructure and reduce fire risk to make areas safe to return to.

Last night, there were additional bus visits for residents whose properties either sustained a total loss or are damaged to the extent that they are uninhabitable at this time.

Bus visits will continue to be scheduled over the coming days, and property owners are being contacted directly in a tiered process with details on visit opportunities. More information can be found here.

BCWS implemented an area restriction order within the vicinity of the McDougall Creek wildfire on Aug. 25 at 12 pm, and it remains in effect until Sept. 8 at 12 pm or until the order is rescinded.

Today and throughout the long weekend, conservation officers will be enforcing the area restriction order, and failure to comply may result in a violation ticket of $1,150.

Stay up-to-date on the McDougall Creek wildfire at the CORD website here.