Fire burning on a hillside inside the Shetland Creek wildfire zone/via BC Wildfire Service
There is some good news on the fire front in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District this Tuesday.
The TNRD has given 36 properties which had been on alert due to the Dunn Creek Wildfire east of Little Fort the all clear.
The BC Wildfire Service is still pegging that fire at just under 23-square kilometers in size, but has not recorded any growth on the blaze for the past few days.
Photo via TNRD
The Dunn Creek fire has been tracking north and away from any homes or properties with “no significant overnight growth” reported.
The BC Wildfire Service says it has 25 firefighting personnel, along with two structure protection crews, heavy equipment, and aerial resources working on this blaze.
“A machine guard continues to be built along the north and south flanks, while crews continue working on establishing a fuel free and completing a hose lay along the northern flank,” the Wildfire Service said. “Helicopters will be available to support throughout the day.”
Elsewhere Tuesday, the TNRD also took around 57 properties in the Venables Valley Area as well as around 14 properties in the Hat Creek/Oregon Jack Road area off of evacuation order Tuesday. All of those properties remain on alert at this time.
The changes mean there are now around 290 properties in TNRD Electoral Area “I” that remain on evacuation alert due to the 272 square kilometre Shetland Creek fire.
There are roughly 17 TNRD properties that remain on evacuation order – 16 of which are in the Venables Valley – with evacuation orders and alerts also in place for several neighbouring First Nations.
Photo via TNRD
The BC Wildfire Service says a Monday afternoon thunderstorm brought between 1 and 10 mm of rain on the Shetland Creek fire, which led to a reduction in fire activity.
Hot and dry weather is expected to return on Wednesday and Thursday, with the fire expected to burn between rank 1 and 3 today.
“How much fire activity we see will depend on how much rain was received on the various flanks and geography of the Shetland Creek wildfire,” the Wildfire Service said, noting it is continuing to prioritize the western and southwestern flanks.
“Higher rank fire activity is only expected in the southwest corner and portions of the west flank where little rain fell. Areas that received only spotty precipitation may burn at Rank 3 (moderately vigorous surface fire) on slopes where heavier fuels are present.”
There are 185 firefighters and support personnel responding to this blaze, along with 16 helicopters, 21 Structure Protection personnel, and 40 pieces of heavy equipment.
