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Wildfire update for the East Kootenay for July 31
BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) today reports four new wildfires since Sunday, July 30 in the East Kootenay.
The largest, at an estimated 4.1 hectares, is located in North Lodgepole Creek, about 20 km east of Elko.
Discovered July 31 at 11:46 a.m., the lightning-caused fire is out of control.
There is a new fire as of this afternoon on Jubilee Mountain, about 11 km northwest of Spillimacheen. The fire is an estimated 0.3 ha.
There is a .009 ha spot fire along Spillimacheen River, about 10 km northwest of Spillimacheen. This fire is a couple of km southwest of the Jubilee Mountain fire. The fire was discovered at 2:22 p.m. on Monday, July 31.
Finally, there is another spot fire (estimated .009 ha) at Lum Creek, about 17 km northeast of Fort Steele.
The region’s three wildfires-of-note
Bruce Mountain (Horsethief Creek) Wildfire
BCWS reports today the fire saw an increase in activity Sunday evening when strong winds came in from the north; a large plume of smoke was visible to surrounding communities in the evening. Structure protection personnel remained on site overnight and reported that the growth of the fire occurred higher up on the slopes of Mount Bruce on the northwest and east flanks of the Horsethief Creek fire. At this time there are no concerns of any impacts to properties and infrastructure in the area.
The forecast calls for a warming and drying trend throughout the week. Sunday, crews are anticipating stronger, variable winds again in the afternoon from the south and southwest. Some minimal precipitation was observed in some local areas on Sunday, but there was not enough to have any noticeable affects on fire behaviour.
Lower relative humidity and higher temperatures may result in increased fire behaviour and increased smoke in the area over the coming days. Poor overnight venting conditions are likely to cause smoky conditions in some valley areas.
The still out-of-control fire discovered July 24 is now an estimated 1,024 ha.
Planned ignitions were not carried out along the Bruce Creek Forest Service Road on Sunday as planned, due to the increased wind and increased fire growth on the southwest flank of the fire. The growth was driven by wind and steep terrain in a westerly direction from the southwest flank of the fire perimeter. Structure protection crews remained on site overnight, BCWS said.
Crews are continuing to conduct mop-up along the north flank of the fire.
Smoky conditions on Monday morning are limiting visibility for crews to observe the extent of the recent growth, however as venting improves throughout the day, crews will work on assessing access opportunities to build guards where safe to do so. An updated fire size will be provided as soon as an accurate assessment can be conducted.
Evacuation Orders and Alerts:
Lladnar Creek Wildfire
The Lladnar Creek Wildfire at Sparwood is today an estimated 379.9 ha and still out-of-control.
The fire received five to eight mm of rain on Sunday under a passing thunderstorm, this precipitation reduced fire behaviour. Observed fire behaviour Saturday and Sunday morning is a smouldering ground fire (rank 1), BCWS reported this afternoon.
“A drier, but still unstable southwesterly flow should support above-average southerly or southwesterly winds again Monday afternoon (although not as gusty as Sunday) with sunnier skies, warmer temperatures, and lower humidities than Sunday. Poor venting overnight with smoke drift in the valley variable or towards the south.
“Sunday’s thunderstorm produced lightning in the area. Aviation resources and ground crews assigned to this fire have been responding to nearby incidents as they are detected. We would like to thank residents for their quick reporting.
“Only minimal growth was observed on the fire has been observed in recent days. Guards are complete from Cummings Creek in the north to Lladnar Creek in the south. Ground crews are working on building a control line to the Matevic drainage and establishing a fuel free from the Lladnar FSR to the tower.
“Plans are complete for contingency lines south, tying into large slide paths on the east face of Mt. Hosmer that work as natural containment.
“As weather and site conditions allow, crews will continue small-scale hand ignitions on the east flank to anchor the fire to the guard. This tactic removes unburnt fuel between the fire edge and control lines in an intentional manner to reduce the chance of the fire spreading beyond control lines,” BCWS explained.
Structure protection personnel are on site to assess, plan and set up structure protection as required in areas of potential concern.
The District of Sparwood has issued an evacuation ALERT due to this wildfire. For the latest information on evacuation alerts and orders, visit the District of Sparwood website.
St. Mary’s River Wildfire
Good news on this front as the fire is being held at 4,640 ha and will no longer be a fire-of-note as of July 31.
“A drier, but still unstable southwesterly flow should support above-average southerly or southwesterly winds again Monday afternoon (although not as gusty as Sunday) with sunnier skies, warmer temperatures, and lower humidities than Sunday. Poor venting overnight with smoke drift in the valley variable or towards the south,” BCWS noted in a morning update.
“The St. Mary’s River wildfire is now classified as Being Held. A fire that is Being Held has received sufficient suppression action that it is not likely to spread further under forecasted conditions.
“While holding the fire is an important milestone, crews still have work ahead. Crews will continue to be a presence in the area completing important work including mop up and danger tree assessing and falling. Intermittent smoke will likely remain visible from within the perimeter until the fire has been declared out,” BCWS said.
Yearling Creek Wildfire
The Yearling Creek Wildfire, about 25 km east of Radium Hot Springs remains out-of-control at an estimated 1,304.7 ha.
“The forecast calls for a warming and drying trend throughout the week. Sunday, crews are anticipating stronger, variable winds again in the afternoon from the south and southwest. Some minimal precipitation was observed in some local areas on Sunday, but there was not enough to have any noticeable affects on fire behaviour,” BCWS reported today.
“Lower relative humidity and higher temperatures may result in increased fire behaviour and increased smoke in the area over the coming days. Poor overnight venting conditions are likely to cause smoky conditions in some valley areas.
Crews are continuing to work on mop-up operations along the Cross Forest Service Road on the west flank of the fire.
Structure Protection personnel remained on site overnight to observe fire growth towards the south. Heavy equipment operators were pulled out of the Yearling drainage area Sunday evening due to increased fire behaviour and growth. Steep terrain in the area of this fire has proved challenging for crews to gain safe access to some parts of the fire.
Evacuation Orders and Alerts
The Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) has implemented an evacuation ORDER and an evacuation ALERT. For more information on the order visit the RDEK website.
Lead image: The Yearling Creek Wildfire near Nipika Mountain Resort. David B Savage photo
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