Wildfire north of Squamish, B.C., a 'wake-up call,' resident says

CBC

2 days ago

A wildfire burning just north of Squamish, B.C., and close to the Sea-to-Sky Highway has put 16 properties under evacuation alert.
The blaze, which is just east of the community of Brackendale and close to a number of backcountry trails, was reported in the late afternoon on Monday.
Squamish Fire Rescue is taking the lead in fighting the blaze, which was measured at five hectares as of 10 p.m. on Monday. The B.C. Wildfire Service has dispatched two helicopters and an air-tanker in response.
Firefighters are asking drivers in the area not to stop along the busy Sea-to-Sky Highway (Highway 99) to view the blaze, saying it poses significant risks.
Those on evacuation alert are asked to prepare by arranging transportation and accommodation in case of an evacuation order and by packing essential items.
Adam Levitt, who has lived in the Sea-to-Sky region for 25 years, took videos of the fire, which is on a big hill behind his house.
"Everyone in the neighborhood is kind of out on the street and everyone's definitely a little bit nervous," he told CBC News on Monday night. "It's definitely early, but it's been very eerily warm here."
An ongoing hot spell for the southern half of B.C. has led to temperature records being shattered.
Environment Canada says high temperatures will persist into the week for the Howe Sound region, which includes Squamish.
The fire is suspected to have been caused by human activity, a broad category of wildfires defined by the B.C. Wildfire Service as any blaze not caused by lightning.
It is burning close to a number of trails, utility poles and cellular towers, according to Levitt.
He praised the firefighting efforts that he saw on Monday, which included firefighters using hoses and helicopter crews dumping buckets of water on the blaze.
The longtime Sea-to-Sky resident said wildfires have always been a concern in the region, but that they have been pretty lucky in avoiding significant activity over the years.
"It sort of feels like there's an axe over our head all the time," he said. "Because ... the summers are getting hotter and drier.
"Hopefully, they get this one knocked down pretty quickly and there's no real damage or anything like that, but it's a bit of a wake-up call for sure."
Gordon Robinson, a fire information officer for the Coastal Fire Centre, told CBC News on Monday evening that firefighters expected warm and dry conditions to stick around until at least Wednesday.
"A lot of the drying that's happened is affecting the fine fuel," he said. "So that's like the surface fuels — like grass and down needles and leaves and things like that. Those are the ones that dry out the fastest."
B.C. officials told a news conference on Monday that the northeast section of the province remains the biggest concern heading into wildfire season, given the prolonged drought conditions in that region.