BC Wildfire Service held a media conference earlier today to give an update on the Bootleg complex fires in Kimberley.
Fire crews have been battling Tower Creek fires since July 15, when they spotted the Matthew Creek fire specifically near St. Mary’s drainage on the evening of July 17.
N11020 – Matthew Creek Fire
On July 18, significant fire behaviour ranks three and four were spotted.
“Air tankers were requested but unfortunately when they got there, this like a pretty steep gully and so the areas that needed to work further down on the fire were inaccessible for them. They can’t fly that low level in a valley. So they were ineffective. So we had to look at different strategies,” says Jeremy Angus, senior wildfire officer operations, BC Wildfire Service.
Officials decided that crews would need to build a road for access and look at establishing containment lines, which could take some time.
Local authorities were engaged, and the Evacuation Alert was triggered for residents to prepare.
“Given the current and forecasted conditions on both fires, particularly with ongoing hot, dry weather and little to no rain, the BC Wildfire Service has made the recommendation that Evacuation Alerts be issued,” says City of Kimberley Fire Chief Will Booth.
“This is the time for residents within both Alert areas to ensure they are staying informed from factual sources, are registered for the Regional Evacuation Notification System, and are taking steps to prepare themselves and their families should conditions worsen.”
Angus says the fire grew to the east by about 10 more hectares overnight.
“We do expect that it could pick up kind of mid-afternoon today or when the smoke lifts,” adds Angus.
The fire is estimated to be 567 hecatres in size, which started in steep and mountainous terrain that is unsafe for crews to action directly.
It’s currently burning rank 1 and 2, meaning a smouldering low-vigour ground fire.
Helicopters, Initial Attack Crews and heavy equipment are assigned to this fire.
N10947 – Tower Creek #2 and N10944 – Tower Creek (Meachen Area)
It’s roughly 250 hectares in size and is burning in steep, inaccessible terrain.
Heavy equipment started work to reopen deactivated sections of a Forest Service Road yesterday and made good progress.
This work is ongoing today to support the guard development, and helicopters will continue to be engaged.
“There will be heavy machinery moving up and down Matthew Creek FSR, Beach Creek FSR today,” says the City of Kimberley Fire Chief Will Booth.
The latest status of the wildfires is available on www.bcwildfire.ca.
No matter where you live in the East Kootenay, register for the Evacuation Notification System here.
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