Fire burning off Highway 12 between Lytton and Lillooet which has shut down all but local traffic on the highway/via Elijah Lightfoot

A new evacuation order has been issued by the Thomspon Nicola Regional District for wildfires in the scorching-hot Fraser Canyon region.

Already forced to move out a pair of homes which have been under threat from a fire which broke out Monday night on the west side of the Fraser River at Lytton, the TNRD has called on a second group of properties to leave immediately — this due a separate fire to the north of the original blaze.

Those living or working along 3 properties running along the Lytton-Lillooet Highway are being asked to leave due to safety concerns.

The evacuation order covers an area of the Fraser Canyon on either side of Izman Creek, which is about 20 kilometers north of Lytton along Highway 12.

Nine other properties in that region have also been put on evacuation alert.

CLICK to expand map outlining evacuation zone from Izman Creek wildfire north of Lytton/via TNRD

It comes after a fire broke out either on — or just below — the roadside on the downslope toward the Fraser River sometime in the early afternoon on Tuesday.

The BC Wildfire Service first flagged the fire in the early part of the afternoon, roughly 2pm, as a small spot fire less than 0.009 hectares.

By 5pm the fire was being pegged at roughly 10 hectares in size.

As of 8pm — shortly before the TNRD issued its evacuation order — the BC Wildfire Service upgraded its assessment, confirming the fire had more than doubled to 25 hectares.

Photo showing the initial stages of the Izman Creek wildfire north of Lytton early Tuesday afternoon/via Elijah Lightfoot

The eastern side of the Highway 12 corridor is sparsely populated, with a handful of homes and industrial sites along the way between Lytton and Lillooet.

This has led to a closure of the Highway to all but emergency crews and local traffic.

While that road isn’t a high-traffic area, it is a key link for locals moving back and forth between Lytton and Lillooet, particularly for those who require health care needs and want to access the hospital in Lillooet.

It’s not clear if the fires in the area may have any impact on the planned shutdowns and construction of the rail crossing of the TransCanada east of Lytton — an ongoing construction project which does include planned overnight shutdowns later on in the week.

Temperatures though Monday and Tuesday in Lytton and the rest of the Fraser Canyon region were hovering in the mid-30’s.

The fire on the west side of Lytton also sprung up on the 4-year anniversary of the devastating fire which all but levelled the Village of Lytton itself.

That sober reminder was evident in an online op-ed put forward by the TNRD Director for the area, Tricia Thorpe, who suggested the Nikaia Creek fire near the Lytton Ferry has been a difficult event for people to watch.

“The Westside Community is close to my heart,” wrote Thorpe on Canada Day, noting she and her husband took up residence on the west side of the Fraser River at Lytton for around 7 months after the 2021 fire destroyed the Village.

“The Community is warm and welcoming and has gone through far too many fires the past few years.”

Thorpe’s op-ed also lauded the volunteer team which was able to mobilize almost immediately after the Nikaia Creek fire was first spotted in the early evening on Monday, suggesting it was their hard work that kept the fire from exploding in size before the BC Wildfire Service personnel were able to get in and take command.

The volunteer group includes around a dozen locals who have gone through BC Wildfire training courses to be the front-line attack crew on a fire in the remote area, which can sometimes take a while to get into.

At the same time — as Canada Day proved — sometimes resources may be needed in two places at once.

Meanwhile, the fire burning about 20-kilometers north of the Nikaia Creek blaze has drawn the attention of the Member of Parliament for the region, Frank Caputo.

Caputo saw the Fraser Canyon area absorbed into the new Kamloops-Thompson-Nicola riding as part of an electoral boundary change which took effect ahead of the federal election.

I am very worried about this fire.

I was in Lillooet and Lytton just 8 days ago.

The residents of the area have been through enough. Grateful to our firefighters for their hard work. I hope to learn more tomorrow in hopes that I can help in any way possible. Be safe! https://t.co/bPhsJe3Ch3

— Frank Caputo (@FrankCaputoKTN) July 2, 2025