B.C. woman describes drive through Bradley Creek wildfire

Avery Brownell says she and her boyfriend drove through flames on Westside Road while trying to return to Vernon as the Bradley Creek wildfire rapidly expanded in B.C.'s Okanagan on Saturday.

Brownell said they had been at her family's cabin when fire began coming down a nearby hill. After starting toward town, they saw that the fire had crossed the road. With flames on both sides and no apparent way to turn around, they continued through.

She recorded part of the drive on her cellphone and said the heat inside the vehicle was intense. Brownell credited her boyfriend, Tanner, with staying focused on the road's centre line and getting them out safely; their older pickup was also undamaged.

More than 200 structures, mostly homes and cabins, were destroyed by the wildfire Saturday. Brownell said her family's cabin was spared, but cabins belonging to relatives and friends were lost.