Alaska Highway reopened after nearby wildfire forced closure near Fort Nelson, B.C.
The stretch of the Alaska Highway near Fort Nelson, B.C., that closed Monday due to a nearby wildfire has reopened to single lane traffic.
Drive BC announced the update in a post around 9:30 p.m., saying the status could change quickly depending on wildfire activity.
The BC Wildfire Service says the blaze is about 26 square kilometres in size and is burning out of control about 10 kilometres northeast of Summit Lake.
It is one of two 'wildfires of note' in the province and prompted the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality to issue an evacuation alert on Monday for the Tetsa River Area.
The wildfire service's latest update says the so-called Summit Lake fire 'experienced significant overnight growth' between Sunday and Monday and 'continues to display aggressive fire behaviour,' growing towards Highway 97.
It says the single-lane alternating traffic is now open between kilometres 580 and 589, but notes that visibility is limited in the area.
The service says there are more than 70 wildfires burning in the province as of Tuesday morning, 50 per cent of which are considered out of control.
This report by Brieanna Charlebois, The Canadian Press, was first published June 3, 2025.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
15 minutes ago
- CBC
Calgary's rainy 'bummer of a summer' causes uptick in flies buzzing around
Social Sharing If you've noticed you're swatting away more flies as of late, you're not alone. Entomologists say Calgary's unusually rainy summer — plus hailstorms in parts of the city — have caused an increase in housefly, blow fly and fruit fly populations. "We've had what people are calling the bummer of a summer," said John Swann, an entomologist with ABI Environmental Services, on the season's damp and chillier-than-usual weather. Swann said that while the moisture has been great for plant growth, more rotting vegetation (such as cut grass) has created the conditions for flies to thrive. "You look at the lawns around Calgary. I mean, certainly the lawns in Varsity have never looked so good," he said. "We are leaving thatch around, that rotting grass.… There's a great environment for flies to breed in." Calgary's summer hailstorms have also played a factor in more fruit flies buzzing around, Swann said, with some areas of the city getting golf ball-sized hail that knocked fruit off trees and destroyed vegetable gardens. Those fallen fruits and vegetables lying around with their skin cut up have become breeding grounds for the common fruit fly. "The fruit flies get into them because they think it's nice and damp in here and it's the food we love," he said. Swann said fly populations will take awhile to decline, but he reminds Calgarians that having more flies around means other animals can thrive. "If those insects are doing really well, things that feed on those insects, including birds, bats, things like that, will do really well," he said, adding that dragonflies and damselflies also like to feed on houseflies. But if you're still bugged by flies in your home, Swann suggested people clean up their yards and toss any damaged fruit. Ken Fry, an entomologist at Olds College, said it's not just flies thriving during the wet weather, but mosquitoes and other insects are also out in higher populations. "We normally would be drying out in July and August — your lawn gets crunchy and you see the roadsides are browning and things like that. But not this year. Everything is still really vibrantly green right now," Fry said. "That means there's lots of food for the critters … [and] more and more reproduction and more and more survival and hence a lot more critters." Come September, Fry said Calgarians could have another bug to reckon with: tiny, green aphids. "With this really good plant growth, this really good moisture, I anticipate seeing … a large crop of aphids this fall." In the last few years, large aphid populations have thrived in Calgary, partly due to humidity, Swann said. But the fate of those insects this year isn't set in stone just yet. Swann said that along with moisture, aphids need warm temperatures to thrive, so if Calgary stays dry or temperatures don't increase enough, we may see fewer aphids than years past.
CBC
15 minutes ago
- CBC
'We need spaces like this': Local Palestinians finding peace by creating community quilt
Social Sharing If you spent some time in Waterloo Park this summer, you may have seen a group of people sitting together and embroidering a quilt. They are part of Tatreez Studio, a local Palestinian community arts organization. They spent five nights throughout the summer meeting in the park to work on The Tatreez Quilt Project, which entailed creating a community quilt using a special embroidery technique called tatreez. Tatreez is an important part of Palestinian identity. The symbols used in the patterns can instantly signal where the textile is from or where the artist who has done the embroidery is from. The theme for this year's quilt translates to: Killing the flowers does not delay spring. Part of gathering together for these workshops is to mourn the lives lost during the Israel-Hamas war. Since the war started in October 2023, more than 61,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military campaign in Gaza, according to local health officials there. Tatreez techniques are usually passed down from mother to daughter says Ala' Al-Thibeh, an artist and founder of Tatreez Studio. "[Tatreez] does get passed down within families so it has been an amazing experience," she said. Using natural materials is a way to connect to the land and to her ancestors, Al-Thibeh said. She said the theme reminded her of the poppy flower. "The poppy blooms every spring, it is a symbol of resistance because no matter what is going to happen, Palestinians will continue to thrive," Al-Thibeh told CBC News during one of the workshops in Waterloo Park. Nimra Bandukwala, a community artist and co-facilitator, dyed the patches with different materials found in the Middle East. The ingredients include: cochineals, rust, sumac berries, onion skins, pomegranate, coffee and more. Bandukwala said now more than ever people mostly receive the news of the war alone on their phones and it is a challenge to be a person with compassion, empathy and openness given the updates. "So to come to a space like this … moving between laughter and heaviness, nothing really compares. We need spaces like this." The group planned to finish the tatreez quilt by late summer but the timeline is flexible. Bandukwala said the quilt will be finished when it is finished. "It will take the time it takes." Al-Thibeh looks at the collaborative exercise not just as a community-building practice or act of resistance but also a form of cultural preservation. Being a tatreez artist, she said, "has connected me in a way I never thought I'd be connected to others, especially through social media." Al-Thibeh said she has taught and learned from people around the world. The group hopes the quilt will be part of a traveling exhibit.
CBC
27 minutes ago
- CBC
Calgary's wet weather has resulted in swarm of mosquitoes — but it could mean fewer wasps
This summer's soggy weather has left many Calgarians slapping away what feels like more mosquitoes than normal, but there is buzz of a possible upside — we could see a quieter start to wasp season. Mosquitoes breed in water, but those same water-soaked conditions they flourish in are essentially the opposite of what wasps need to grow their colonies. "If they get a good start in the spring with a warm spring, then there's potential for the populations to be fairly large." said Ken Fry, an entomologist with Olds College. "If we get cooler temperatures, they're slower to develop, that first generation [is] slower to develop and they get a very slow start." 2024 saw a comparatively warmer and drier summer, with some pest control technicians swarmed by higher numbers of calls to come remove wasp nests. But this year is a different story, with July for example seeing a high number of wet, rainy days and chillier temperatures. The conditions can mean a more sluggish start for the queen to lay eggs and grow generations of workers. "If that's really slow, it takes a while for the colony to build up," said Fry, who predicts an average to below-average season. Population could still ramp up Typically, the most wasp activity will be in late August and early September. Fry says while it could be a quieter August, whether it gets busier is still up to mother nature. A stretch of a couple weeks of warm weather could be enough to accelerate their life cycle and create a higher population come September. Plus, more rain means more plant growth, and richer vegetation can lead to a proliferation of smaller insects that wasps can then kill to feed to their larvae. "If it warms up, we get persistent warm temperatures, like mid-20s, with all the abundant food, the warm weather for them to develop, the generation times will shorten, they'll develop more quickly and then we'll start to see the populations build," said Fry. While wasps buzzing around can be a nuisance, Fry says they do play a vital role in the ecosystem and keeping other insects in check. "What they're doing out there is feeding on insects. So, they're taking the grubs off your trees, the caterpillars off your trees, out of your vegetable garden," said Fry. And while you might not come into contact with as many wasps, if and when you do have a run-in, Fry cautions against squashing them — or you could end up with more of them on your hands.
