More residents of Osoyoos, B.C., heading home despite recent wildfire growth

More residents of Osoyoos, B.C., and the surrounding area are being allowed to return home after being forced out by a fast-moving wildfire that spread from neighbouring Washington state over the weekend.

The fire scorched about 30 square kilometres on the northern side of the border as of Tuesday, more than doubling in size overnight.

BC Wildfire Service spokeswoman Shaelee Stearns said the fire burning closest to the town of about 5,000 residents saw minimal growth overnight, while shifting winds fanned flames on the west side and on the northwest corner of the blaze, accelerating its growth.

“Those changes there have been reflecting the good work that firefighters are doing, especially as they continue up along that eastern flank, not only here in Canada, but also in the U.S.,” she said.

Stearns said 50 firefighters, 65 structure protection personnel and six helicopters are responding to the fire.

The service's top priorities are human safety, then properties and the environment, she said, so the fire burning nearest to town is where they are concentrating their resources.

Erick Thompson of the Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen said 48 properties in the town of Osoyoos and 143 more from the regional district remain on evacuation order.

He said almost 1,000 homes also remain on evacuation alert, meaning those residents must be ready to leave at short notice.

The Eagle Bluff fire came close to engulfing the town as it roared down surrounding hills on Saturday night, forcing the evacuation of more than 700 properties, before a wind shift turned the tide for firefighters.

The regional district first lifted several of the alerts and orders Monday.

The same wildfire also burned 62 square kilometres on the American side as of Tuesday, where it has destroyed several structures.

A new incident command team is taking over the fight against the fire, Stearns said.

“This is still a very evolving situation,” she said during a briefing on Tuesday.

The service is reporting there are more than 350 active wildfires burning in British Columbia as of Tuesday, with 194 out of control and 13 fires of note that are either highly visible or pose potential threats to public safety.

The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District issued an evacuation order for all properties around the Downton Lake fire in the Bridge River Valley north of Pemberton on Tuesday.

The blaze more than doubled in size since Monday, when flames raced eastward on the steep northern hillsides above Gun Lake and its more than 200 cabins. The service says the fire grew to about eight square kilometres in size as of Tuesday afternoon.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 1, 2023.