'We just want to go home': Evacuee overwhelmed as wildfire spreads in B.C.'s south Okanagan
Marty Marchand is one of the hundreds of Olalla, B.C. residents who were ordered to leave their homes this week because of the aggressive, out-of-control Keremeos Creek wildfire.
She packed up and left her home on Friday and said the process has been stressful and overwhelming.
"It was tough because I was OK when I left, but then afterward I sat there and I didn't even know where I was going," she said.
"It was an ugly feeling. You kind of feel like you're homeless. You don't have a place to go to," she continued.
She's staying at a motel in Princeton, B.C. – which is roughly 75 kilometres from her home -- until Wednesday. She doesn't know where she'll go after that.
"We just want to go home," she told CTV News.
Despite her emotional state, she said she would rather be safe and away from the dangers of the fire.
Evacuation orders are in place for more than 500 properties, with alerts in place for upwards of 1,000 more.
Bryan Zandberg, information officer for the BC Wildfire Service, said the blaze remained at an estimated 5,903 hectares Sunday morning.
"We are mindful of people's inconvenience and hardship out of their homes. We are trying to get folks back in," he said.
"We're trying to contain the fire. We have 381 firefighting personnel on the fire today," he added. Those crews are being supported by 16 helicopters and 43 units of heavy equipment.
But winds picked up later in the afternoon on Sunday and smoke plumes could be seen just outside the homes of nearby residents in nearby Keremeos where residents have been on edge since an evacuation alert was issued.
"We've been watching it get steadily getting closer over time. I honestly didn't think it would get this far," said Michelle Firrisi.
"We're just getting a little concerned now," she continued.
BC Liberal Leader Kevin Falcon is questioning whether the wildfire service is doing enough to respond, saying they should be using night vision tools.
"It's being utilized in neighbouring Alberta very successfully. In fact, they're bragging about it and tweeting the stories," he said
"We ought to be using it in British Columbia. Come on, BC Wildfire Service, let's put every possible technology, group and equipment to work," he added.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.