Illegal-fire tickets issued as B.C. wildfire evacuations expand

The B.C. Conservation Officer Service says officers issued 18 tickets for illegal fires over the long weekend in areas threatened by major wildfires, including Clinton, 70 Mile House, Okanagan Lake and Boston Bar. The tickets were issued where fire prohibitions were in effect; the service did not specify the type of fires involved.

Full fire bans remain in place in the Kamloops, Cariboo and Southeast fire centres, while coastal B.C. has a partial campfire ban. The service said it issued 19 campfire-violation tickets the previous weekend and urged residents to follow fire restrictions and road closures.

Evacuation orders expanded along Okanagan Lake after two dozen additional Westside Road properties were ordered out. More than 2,600 people have been displaced by the out-of-control Quilpituk Creek fire, while the Bradley Creek fire farther north has destroyed at least 230 homes on Okanagan Indian Band reserve lands and in the Regional District of North Okanagan.

Two hundred Mexican firefighters arrived in Abbotsford for a 14-day deployment and were expected to be assigned to the Brunswick fire complex near Boston Bar. Premier David Eby said they are part of a 600-person contingent arriving from elsewhere in Canada and abroad. Crews from Australia and New Zealand were also reported to be travelling to Canada for a five-week deployment.

In Metro Vancouver, a 1.5-hectare fire in Belcarra Regional Park was declared held Thursday after a brief evacuation alert for properties near Anmore. Officials said the fire is believed to have been human-caused. Evacuation orders around Boston Bar have been downgraded, while all Wait Creek fire alerts and orders east of Kimberley have been rescinded.