The Christie Mountain wildfire this afternoon, Aug. 19, 2020.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Shay Morrow
Republished August 19, 2020 - 3:36 PM
Original Publication Date August 19, 2020 - 2:15 PM
The Christie Mountain wildfire has grown to 1,400 hectares today from 1,000 ha last night.
Most of the fire's growth has been attributed to overnight winds, according to the B.C. Wildfire Service, and the estimated size will likely change once the smoke begins to dissipate. Fire activity is expected to increase during the hottest part of the day.
Eighty-six firefighters are working with the Penticton Fire Department and structure protection specialists on the southwest flank of the fire to establish control lines for values protection.
"Ground personnel will continue to be supported by nine helicopters throughout the day. Additional resources will be arriving throughout the day today, including a Type 1 Incident Management Team (IMT), which is currently mobilizing. An IMT is a specialized and highly trained group of people who will assume command of all aspects of the incident. They will be arriving over the next day travelling from various areas of the province," according to the service's Facebook page.
The wildfire is located six kilometres north of Okanagan Falls on the east side of Skaha Lake six kilometres west of Penticton and has put a number of properties in the South Okanagan on evacuation orders and alerts.
An evacuation order remains in effect for 319 properties in Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen's electoral area D. Nearly 4,000 Penticton homes are on an evacuation alert.
READ MORE: No structures lost in Penticton boundary to Christie Mountain wildfire: Mayor
Penticton's mayor said during a press conference Aug. 19 that no structures were lost within Penticton's boundary and the RDOS confirmed that one house was destroyed in the regional district.
- This story was updated at 3:30 p.m. to include additional information on the status of the fire.
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