Weather prevents planned ignitions on West Kelowna wildfire | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
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Kelowna News

Weather prevents planned ignitions on West Kelowna wildfire

The Mt Law wildfire near Highway 97C, Aug. 20, 2021.
Image Credit: FACEBOOK/Roanna Nykole

Current weather conditions and forecasted precipitation meant firefighters did not go ahead with planned ignitions on the Mt Law wildfire yesterday night.

The Mt Law wildfire, currently burning north of Highway 97C, is roughly 800 hectares in size and classified as out of control, according to the B.C. Wildfire Service.

“Skimmers were used yesterday to cool the fire and slow spread towards the south and east. The fire will however maintain a high visibility throughout today and overnight tonight whilst crews continue to work to contain this fire,” according to the service.

Today, firefighters are continuing to mop up where the wildfire has met guards and guards will continue to be built where machines can access terrain, according to the service.

“It is anticipated planned ignitions of a 35 hectare and 10ha area will occur in the coming days as a weather window of opportunity arises. The size of these planned ignitions will decrease due to the fire slowly burning in those areas,” according to the service.

There is currently no threat to Highway 97C but the wildfire service is asking drivers to not stop on the highway or slow down to take photos as this can cause accidents.

The wildfire has not seen significant growth in the last few days.

In the Central Okanagan, 15 properties remain on an evacuation order while most West Kelowna residents who previously evacuated are now on an alert. For more information on alerts and orders, visit the Emergency Operations Centre’s website.

Today, there are 45 firefighters, 31 pieces of heavy equipment, four helicopters and 34 support staff on site.

 


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