Photo: contributed
UPDATE: 9:33 a.m
BC Wildfire Service said crews were challenged overnight Friday as they battled the Keremeos Creek Wildfire.
The south flank, north of Ollala, had some spots and eruptions.
“They were able to act and then do some manual ignition to solidify their lines and they stopped the fire on the rocky bluff north of the village. There was no fire damage to the structures during the overnight period,” BCWS said. on Saturday morning. update
“On the northeast flank, crews were challenged by winds in the area and are working on building contingency lines.”
Currently, the fire is estimated at 5,903 hectares.
Along with 15 helicopters and 40 pieces of heavy equipment, there are 260 wildland firefighters assigned to this fire working with an additional 166 structural protection personnel from BC fire departments for a total of 426 firefighters.
BCWS said they expect a strong upper ridge to be in the area on Saturday.
Plans for Saturday on the east flank are to build fuelless lines from Green Mountain Road to the McKay Creek staging area. Sprinklers will be installed behind properties on Green Mountain Road.
Crews will be building lines around Hedges Butte to McKay Creek, as well as building non-fuel and hand guards from McKay Creek to Green Mountain Road.
On the west flank, crews will use direct attack methods from Green Mountain Road to Keremeos Creek Forest Service Road. Heavy equipment will be used to establish contingency lines from Apex Mountain through Dividend Mountain to south of Keremeos Creek.
In preparation for the planned burn, crews will continue to establish handlines along the Olalla Creek Forest Service Road.
Crews have been assigned to hold the fire north of the Highway 3 corridor.
Highway 3A remains closed at this time between the Highway 97 interchange at Kaleden and Keremeos.
Click here for an interactive map of all properties under command and alert.
Photo: BCWS
Updated legend on perimeter map. The map contains evacuation orders and alerts.
ORIGINAL: 4 h
There are 166 structural protection personnel from BC fire departments responding to the Keremeos Creek wildfire on Friday as more than 540 properties in rural Keremeos, the Apex area and Olalla remain under orders to evacuation.
Another 1,050 properties in the area are on alert.
An update Friday afternoon put the fire at nearly 6,000 acres and had shut down Highway 3A.
BC Wildfire Service sent out a post Friday night specifically to thank the Structures Protection Branch, which “has played an integral role in defending properties near the wildfire.”
21 fire trucks, 15 water tenders and a mechanic help the firefighters in their work.
These crews are an accumulation of more than 35 fire departments, according to BCWS, as well as many unique resources that have provided assistance in responding to this wildfire.
“The BC Wildfire Service recognizes and appreciates the long-standing cooperative relationship with the structural firefighting community,” they wrote.
The forest fire broke out on Friday 29 July and has so far caused the loss of one home.