Three fires of note in the Cariboo are now classified as ‘being held’, and progress is being made on others.
The Chasm wildfire is now classified as ‘being held’ according to the BC Wildfire Service. They say the fire has a fuel-free guard and a hose lay around the entire fire. The BC Wildfire Service says crews will focus on patrolling the fire for hotspots today. They will also start to demobilize some of the gear The fire is estimated to be 454 hectares.
The Purdy Lake wildfire is also now classified as ‘being held’. Crews are patrolling the north and southwestern flanks and extinguishing hotspots. The fire is estimated to be 8,100 hectares.
The Hotnarko Creek fire is also classified as ‘being held’, and will no longer be considered a fire of note after 9:00 PM tomorrow (July 28th). Crews are continuing efforts on identifying visible smokes and establishing a 100-foot blackline along the edge of the southeastern flanks. Crews will also prioritize actioning hotspots.
More planned ignitions will happen on the Flat Lake Fire today if conditions allow. Wildfire Information Officer Rosalie Macaulay says crews are continuing to work to increase the containment of the fire by building a guard on the south side of the fire. The fire is estimated to be 39,584 hectares. Macaulay says an increase in temperatures over the next few days will most likely result in an increase in fire behaviour.
Macaulay says crews have made significant progress with containment on the fire south of Canim Lake, which is estimated to be 2,673 hectares. She says the fire behaviour was observed as low, and efforts are concentrated on the Southeast end of the fire.
Sustained wind and warmer weather increased fire behaviour on the Big Stick Lake fire on Monday. Wildfire Information Officer Jessica Mack says helicopter bucketing operations helped cool hotspots to ensure all activity remained within containment lines. She says crews will be focusing on mop-up operations where yesterday’s planned ignitions occurred. The fire is estimated to be 7,321 hectares.
On the McKinley Lake fire, crews and heavy equipment are working today to push the guard closer to the fire perimeter on the eastern flank while firefighters conduct mop-up operations. The fire is estimated to be 1,834 hectares.
The BC wildfire service says yesterday’s aerial ignition on the Young Lake fire was successful. Crews will continue with hand ignitions, and heavy equipment is working to widen and re-enforce existing containment lines. The fire is estimated to be 4,000 hectares.