Evacuation orders to lift in parts of B.C., but wildfire disruptions drag on
Residents of British Columbia's Shuswap region must wait another day for evacuation orders to lift in wildfire-ravaged areas of the community, complicating the return to school for some students.
The North Okanagan-Shuswap School District says in a message on its website that the year will begin a day late, with a half day of classes on Wednesday for most of its roughly 6,000 students.
The district says students from North Shuswap Elementary, the area where wildfires devastated several communities, won't start school until next Monday, and will be temporarily relocated almost 50 kilometres away while power is restored and repairs are made.
The Columbia Shuswap Regional District says evacuation orders tied to the Bush Creek East wildfire will drop to alerts on Wednesday, allowing Celista and Magna Bay residents to return in the early afternoon, followed over the next several hours by residents of Scotch Creek, Lee Creek, the Lower East Adams Lake area and Tsutswecw park.
Regional district information officer Tim Conrad says the wildfire has destroyed 176 homes, cabins and other structures in the north Shuswap and damaged another 50.
The Central Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre rescinded all remaining evacuation alerts on Tuesday for properties in Lake Country and the City of Kelowna, although it said orders and alerts remain in place in West Kelowna and for the Westbank First Nation because the McDougall Creek wildfire remains out of control.
Thousands of people were chased from their homes starting Aug. 17 when the McDougall Creek fire was fanned by strong winds and quickly burned numerous homes.
The BC Wildfire Service says more than 430 fires are currently burning across the province, with 201 still ranked as out of control and 14 rated as fires of note, meaning they are highly visible or continue to threaten property or public safety.
The wildfire service website says there have been just under 2,100 fires since the start of the season on April 1.
Almost $600 million has been spent by the province on wildfire costs by the end of August, almost triple the $204 million set aside in the 2023 budget.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 5, 2023.
With files from CHNL
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadian former Olympic snowboarder wanted in Ontario double homicide: DOJ
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an “innocent” couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
More Trudeau cabinet ministers not running for re-election, sources say shuffle expected soon
Federal cabinet ministers Filomena Tassi, Carla Qualtrough, and Dan Vandal announced Thursday they will not run for re-election. Senior government sources tell CTV News at least one other – Marie-Claude Bibeau – doesn't plan to run again, setting the stage for Justin Trudeau to shuffle his cabinet in the coming weeks.
Former members of One Direction say they're 'completely devastated' by Liam Payne's death
The former members of English boy band One Direction reacted publicly to the sudden death of their bandmate, Liam Payne, for the first time on Thursday, saying in a joint statement that they're 'completely devastated.'
Israel says it has killed top Hamas leader Yayha Sinwar in Gaza
Israeli forces in Gaza killed top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, a chief architect of last year’s attack on Israel that sparked the war, the military said Thursday. Troops appeared to have run across him unknowingly in a battle, only to discover afterwards that a body in the rubble was Israel’s most wanted man.
Ontario school board trustees under fire for $100K religious art purchase on Italy trip
Trustees with an Ontario school board are responding to criticism over a $45,000 trip to Italy, where they purchased more than $100,000 worth of religious statues.
From Taylor Swift to Tinkerbell, these are the top trending Halloween costumes in Canada
According to Google search data, the top Halloween costumes trending in Canada include everything from Taylor Swift for kids to the Joker and Harley Quinn for couples.
A photographer snorkeled for hours to take this picture
Shane Gross, a Canadian marine conservation photojournalist, has won the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Singh 'doesn't understand' why Poilievre won't get top security clearance
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says it's very disturbing that Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre won't get the top-level security clearance needed to view classified documents on foreign interference.
Woman accused of killing 3 people in 3 days opposes mental health assessment
A Toronto court has ordered an assessment to determine if a woman accused of killing three people in three Ontario cities over three days is fit to stand trial at this time.