Map courtesy: Cariboo Regional District

By Greg Fry

Wildfire update

Barkerville under evacuation alert

Jul 11, 2024 | 5:22 AM

BARKERVILLE — Update at of 13:35: The Minister for Emergency Management Bowinn Ma gave an update on the wildfire situation this morning. She says all possible resources have been deployed to a number of fires in the Province, the majority of which are located in the Cariboo and Prince George Fire Centres.

“I do want to emphasize that the North, and in particular the Northeast, has been in a wildfire season already for several months. There are currently 500,000 hectares of fire burning in the Prince George Fire Center today. And so while the rest of the province has benefited from some of the cooler and wetter conditions that we have seen in May and June, it’s important for us to remember that for those communities in the north, the fire season has already been well underway and has been as well for some time.”

She says the Province is already looking to outside resources from places like Australia. Meanwhile, she says she is well aware of the situation in Barkerville which is under an evacuation alert, as is the District of Wells. A portion of that alert has been upgraded to an evacuation order for the northeast portion of the existing alert.

“We sent multiple resources, including air tankers, crews, helicopters and senior operations staff to go and assess all 22 of those fires. While they were out there, they found other fires and I think we got the number was 33 new fires just in a small area in that sort of Quesnel’s zone to the east of Quesnel and to the generally to the north of Barkerville,” explains Cliff Chapman, Director, BC Wildfire Service.

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Update: The District of Wells has issued an evacuation alert and an order due to the Barkerville/ Cornish Mountain area fire.

The order covers the Eight and Nine Mile Lake areas, Cornish Lake and mine sites.

Map courtesy District of Wells

Earlier: Wildfire season is heating up in British Columbia.

The BC Wildfire Service says there’s been 51 new fire starts over the past 24 hours, due in large part to lightning strikes, high temperatures and a lack of precipitation.

On Wednesday night at 10:30 p.m., the Cariboo Regional District issued an evacuation alert for the Barkerville/Cornish Mountain Fire area which is 70 hectares in size.

The fire is suspected to have been caused by lightning and was discovered on Wednesday. The BC Wildfire Service has the fire listed as out-of-control.

The Cariboo Regional District suggests you take the following precautions when under an evacuation alert:

• Have a plan to transport all family members or co-workers outside of the area, should the area be brought under evacuation order.
• Make grab-and-go bags for each member of your household to keep essential items readily available for a quick departure. Pack clothing, ready-to-eat food, toiletries, medications, eyeglasses, valuable papers (i.e. insurance), immediate care needs for dependents and, if you choose, keepsakes (photographs, etc.).
• Ensure that any dependents or pets are prepared for departure. Gather comfort items (blankets, stuffed animals, etc.) for your dependents to make an evacuation less stressful. Gather any kennels or leashes to make transportation safe with your pets.
• Move pets and livestock to a safe area if they cannot be evacuated. Ensure water and feed are available.
• Keep the fuel tanks of personal vehicles full in case a new order is issued.
• Ensure that you have accommodation options for your family, if possible. An Evacuee Reception Centre will be made available if required. Homeowner or tenant insurance may provide greater support than ESS will be able to.
• In the event you are evacuated, do not shut off your natural gas. For more information, visit fortisbc.com/forestfires.
• Monitor reliable news sources for information on evacuation orders and locations of Reception Centres and the CRD’s channels on Facebook and cariboord.ca.
• If you are on an evacuation ALERT, or if you have been displaced from your home due to an emergency, please self-register for Emergency Support Services. You will need to sign up for the BC Services Card app to access te self-registration tool, which will reduce wait times for evacuees and assist in the referral process. https://ess.gov.bc.ca/

Residents are encouraged to register for the Cariboo Chilcotin Emergency Notification System to receive a text, call or email regarding Evacuation Alerts and Orders.

For Cariboo Regional District information, please visit Cariboo Regional District’s website, Emergency Operations Centre Facebook page, Twitter / X feed, or call the CRD’s emergency information line at 1-866-759-4977.

Map courtesy: Cariboo Regional District