Arabnews24.ca:Friday 9 June 2023 03:54 PM: The West Kiskatinaw River wildfire burning in northern B.C. is pushing closer to the evacuated town of Tumbler Ridge.
Forrest Tower, an information officer with the B.C. Wildfire Service, said Friday morning the blaze is four to five kilometres away from Highway 52, which runs through Tumbler Ridge.
Meanwhile, the District of Tumbler Ridge is reporting the fire as being "about three kilometres away" from the townsite.
"We continue to see pretty extreme fire behaviour pretty much every day since this fire has started," Tower told CBC. "We're expecting it to remain very aggressive starting pretty early this morning, expecting torching, candling. So that's full consumption of trees starting around 10 this morning."
Tower said the fire "is not receptive to any sort of suppression activities that we would normally be able to do" and said wind is pushing the fire "in a westerly direction, which is still toward the community of Tumbler Ridge."
Tower said a wind shift — which would push the fire in the opposite direction — is expected on Saturday but noted the shift "might happen a bit early and happen this afternoon."
"If we do get a wind shift, good news for the community," he said.
In a social media post, the District of Tumbler Ridge said the wind shift in the westerly direction pushed the fire "parallel to the ridge, about three kilometres away from Tumbler Ridge."
"Ground crews worked to protect homes and property, with cooler temperatures and a change in wind direction predicted along with a chance of light rain in the next 24 hours," the post said.
Fire estimated at 96 square kilometres
Highway 52 East and North is closed due to the wildfire, which was discovered on Tuesday. As of Friday morning, the size of the fire was estimated at 96 square kilometres.
Tumbler Ridge residents were ordered to evacuate from the community on Thursday. According to the district, "the vast majority of residents" had left by 10 p.m., with a "core group" of emergency workers, volunteers and Emergency Operation Centre staff members remaining "on standby," along with Mayor Darryl Krakowka and council members.
The evacuation order covers the District of Tumbler Ridge, home to roughly 2,400 people in northeastern B.C., as well as properties to the east, including homes at Bearhole Lake.
According to the Peace River Regional District, as of 8 p.m. Thursday, hotels were fully booked in Dawson Creek, 117 kilometres from Tumbler Ridge. Chetwynd — 96 kilometres away — also had no hotel vacancy. Some camping spots were still available in both areas.
Those looking for hotel accommodation are asked to head to Fort St. John — 170 kilometres north of Tumbler Ridge — where they can register at the Pomeroy Sport Centre.
