Much of Peachland under evacuation alert due to out of control wildfire

Many living in Peachland in B.C.'s Okanagan are being told to be ready to leave at a moment's notice as the out of control Glen Lake wildfire prompted an evacuation alert for much of the district.

The human-caused fire started Saturday evening, initially 15 kilometers from Peachland, but is now eight kilometres away from the district.

The fire ballooned from 100 hectares Sunday to 650 hectares by Monday afternoon, which prompted the Central Okanagan Emergency Operations to expand evacuation alerts to much of Peachland.

BC Wildfire Service says wind is the driving force fuelling the fire.

“It’s been very windy the last couple of days,” said fire information officer Evan Lizotte. “Today we were hoping for the winds to die down, they haven't died down as much as we were hoping.”

After a weekend with record-breaking heat in parts of the Okanagan, cooler temperatures and calmer wind is in the forecast for the rest of the week, according to Lizotte.

As of Monday night, eight cabins outside Peachland were under evacuation order.

“Stay calm - there's no need to panic,” said Peachland’s mayor Patrick Van Minsel, who advised people ensure to get their information directly from emergency operations and follow what those officials advise. “Currently we are developing structure protection plans based on different scenarios. Emergency personnel and structural support units are in place to protect critical infrastructure.”

Minsel is asking residents to have a grab-and-go bag ready as a precaution.

“It looked like a volcano,” said area resident and former MLA Judi Tyabji, describing the smoke outside the Peachland-area cabin she’s currently living in.

It wasn’t under evacuation order this weekend, but she chose to self-evacuate when the fire came too close for comfort.

“I moved because I couldn't breathe,” said Tyabji. “Ash was falling from the sky all day and the wind has been crazy.”

The former MLA is pushing for the province to do more mitigation, as B.C. is amid its worst fire season in history.

“We have to have better preparation, we have to have better resources, this is not going away.”

Mayor Van Minsel says his council and councils from across the Okanagan are calling for more action too, and that we need to learn from this year’s record-breaking wildfire season.

The group is putting forward proposals, plans and having meetings with officials at the Union of BC Municipalities conference currently underway in Vancouver.