The people of British Columbia who were destroyed by a forest fire in 2021 are now under evacuation orders, as a fast-growing forest fire is once again threatening the area.
Lytton made headlines last year when a fire engulfed the city, destroying most homes and businesses. The fire broke out days after the village recorded a record summer temperature of 49.6ºC.
In the following months, some neighbors returned and began the slow process of rebuilding. On Friday morning, however, the British Columbia Forest Fire Service said the Nohomin Creek fire is out of control and has doubled since Thursday evening, reaching 500 acres. At least 50 Lytton residents have been ordered to evacuate, as well as several reservations within the Lytton First Nation.
“We’re prepared for the unthinkable to happen again,” Lytton resident Tricia Thorpe posted on Facebook. She and her husband rebuilt her home after it was destroyed in last year’s fire. They intend to stay, having installed a sprinkler system designed to protect the houses from forest fires and confident that the fire will not jump the Fraser River.
The fire burns on the west bank of the river, in front of Lytton. The houses on the west bank of the river, which are part of the Lytton First Nation Reserve, were not largely affected by the 2021 fire.
“We have three seniors who are in the direct line of this fire and we are working to make sure they are safe and we can put out the fire as soon as possible,” said John Haugen, deputy head of Lytton First. Nation told reporters. “We are experiencing another fire … in the Hell’s Gate area. We need to be prepared for many things in a very short time.”
“The events of 2021 and the impacts on the people of Lytton and the Lytton First Nation are at the forefront of our minds,” Rob Schweitzer, operations director of the Kamloops fire center, told reporters.
Helicopters and 60 more firefighters are expected to arrive in the area on Friday.