Wind, dry heat fuelling wildfires in B.C., little sign of relief in forecast
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Dry, warm weather and windy conditions across British Columbia are creating the perfect conditions for wildfires this week.
Environment Canada says little precipitation is in the forecast throughout the province and temperatures are expected to keep climbing into next week.
In northeastern B.C., the Donnie Creek wildfire has grown to 1,684 square kilometres and triggered more evacuation orders from the Peace River Regional District on Tuesday.
They include:
The area north of Grewatsch Creek on PDR 222.
The area north of Kilometre 44 on Tommy Lakes Road.
To the junction of Horse Range Creek and Sikanni Chief River.
Northeast along Sikanni Chief River to the Peace River Regional District.
The area north of Kilometre 20 on PDR 204.
North to the border with the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality.
The neighbouring Northern Rockies Regional Municipality rescinded a previous evacuation order, but issued a new alert for properties bordering the Klua Lakes wildfire, which is burning several kilometres north of the Donnie Creek blaze.
Meanwhile, on Vancouver Island, a wildfire burning out of control near the community of Sayward is holding steady at just under a square kilometre. That fire, dubbed the Newcastle Creek fire, has blanketed much of the area in smoke.
Mayor Mark Baker says the wind is currently blowing the fire away from the community, which lies about 200 kilometres northwest of Nanaimo, and no structures are threatened at this time.
"The smoke and the plumes are quite visible," he told On The Island host Gregor Craigie on Wednesday morning.
"Depending on where you are in the valley, you could see the flames."
Sayward Mayor Mark Bake says the fire is visible from the village. (Joyce Ellis via CBC News)
Baker says people with severe respiratory illnesses are being asked to either shelter in place or leave the community due to the smoke.
"Some have taken off to friends and families and other part of the island to avoid it, because we're going to have this smoke for a while," he said.
The Newcastle Creek fire is suspected to be human-caused.
WATCH: Top 5 ways humans cause forest fires in North America
Thumbnail courtesy of Christopher Heidenreich via CBC.
This article was originally written and published for CBC News. Contains files from On The Island.