Wildfire spreads on southern Vancouver Island amid 'challenging' terrain

An out-of-control wildfire on southern Vancouver Island has grown to 50 hectares as firefighting crews continue to battle the blaze west of Victoria.

The wildfire in the Sooke Potholes Regional Park was discovered just before 2:45 p.m. Monday, when it measured only three hectares and was believed to be human-caused.

The fire spread overnight, covering a 30-hectare area before jumping to 50 hectares by the afternoon.

The fire's rapid growth prompted the activation of an emergency operations centre, as well as the full closure and evacuation of the park and the nearby Spring Salmon campground.

Campers who were forced to leave their belongings behind due to the evacuation order may be allowed to return to retrieve them Tuesday if conditions permit, according to a statement from the District of Sooke.

In an update Tuesday morning, the B.C. Wildfire Service said the fire continues to burn out of control as three helicopters equipped with buckets and three ground-attack crews work to douse the flames.

Approximately 10 officials with the Capital Regional District were also on scene to assist in the containment efforts.

"There's some very steep, very broken terrain on those north and south lengths of the fire," said Sam Bellion, spokesperson for the B.C. Wildfire Service's Coastal Fire Centre.

"Operation in there is really challenging our crews, but we do have air support in there this morning, supporting them and assisting in the suppression efforts, and they've been seeing some good progress on the heel of the fire, which is the part that backs up on the Galloping Goose Trail."

A reconnaissance aircraft is scheduled to conduct a flyover of the fire site Tuesday to get a better sense of its size and activity, according to the wildfire service.

More than 360 wildfires were burning across the province Tuesday morning, including more than 70 that sparked within the last day.