The province’s only wildfire of note continues to burn out of control near Port Alberni on Monday.
The BC Wildfire Service says a recent downpour of 36 millimetres of rain has helped reduce the Mount Underwood wildfire’s activity — and more is coming.
Julia Caranci, a fire information officer, says the region is expecting a “drying trend” after that, but nothing compared to the dry period that first sparked the fire on Aug. 11.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO 1130 NEWSRADIO VANCOUVER LIVE!“We had about six weeks with almost no rain in the mid-Island area — very, very hot and dry conditions, and we are unlikely to see that moving forward. We’re moving into a more fall-like weather pattern: those shorter days and longer nights and better overnight recoveries,” said Caranci.
She says a crew of over 150 firefighters is battling the 36-square-kilometre wildfire.
“They are situated along the west flank of the fire and the north flank of the fire. And basically they are all working towards one another to build containment along those west and north flanks,” she explained.
Residents should stay up to date
She recommends residents always stay up to date on the most recent developments of fires in their vicinity. This way, people are more prepared when it comes to evacuations.
“I lived in Port Alberni for 10 years. So I totally understand because I’m a resident of this area,” Caranci said.
I do want people to know and feel assured that we are there on the fire responding, that we are well-resourced to respond to this fire,” she told 1130 NewsRadio in an interview.
The Mount Underwood fire, which is only eight kilometres south of Port Alberni, triggered evacuation orders from both the Alberni-Clayoquot and Cowichan Valley regional districts. Both are still in effect.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
There are currently 76 active wildfires burning in B.C.
However, after the rainfall over the weekend, only four are out of control, and a total of 60 fires were declared “out” in the last seven days alone.
The most recent fire of that category is a 0.009-hectare fire, less than 30 kilometres south of Cranbrook.