By Times Chronicle Staff
The Placer Creek Wildfire burning midway between Eastgate and the western edge of Cathedral Provincial Park has now expanded to 2,600 hectares after being discovered on July 12, with the first firefighting action on the evening of July 13.
BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) has now added additional resources to fighting the fire including an Incident Management Team, with a total of 49 wildland firefighters, four helicopters, nine pieces of heavy equipment and three water tenders working the wildfire, it said in an update today (July 15, 11:00 a.m.).
The BCWS said the cooler temperatures on Monday supported crews in their direct attack of the wildfire. Fire activity on Monday was generally limited to Rank 2 with pockets of Rank 3, which is a low to moderately vigorous surface fire.
Placer Creek wildfire from Hwy. 3 Sunday Summit.
Lower Similkameen Indian Band photo
“Today ground crews continue to secure a control line on the western and northwestern flanks of the fire to prevent the fire from growing toward communities and Highway 3,” BCWS said in its update.
A BCWS Incident Management Team assumed command of the Placer Creek wildfire on Monday and additional wildfire personnel and resources will be arriving on the fire Tuesday and Wednesday, it added.
The wildfire service said there has been a “persistent lack of precipitation in the Placer Creek area over the past three weeks,” with little to no rainfall over the weekend or on Monday.
Today and into this week the BCWS expects clear skies and above-seasonal temperatures, which could lead to increased fire activity.
Temperatures today are expected to reach up to 32°C in valley bottoms with the relative humidity (RH) dropping to 20 per cent, it said. Winds will remain northerly at 10-15 km/h, with gusting up to 20-25 km/h into the afternoon. No precipitation is forecast for the coming days.
“Overnight we expect to see fair recoveries over the Placer Creek wildfire, helping to decrease overnight fire behaviour.”
Placer Creek Wildfire from Placer FSR.
Lower Similkameen Indian Band photo
Tomorrow (Wednesday, July 16), is set to be sunny with high temperatures between 31-35°C and low RH between 15-20 per cent. “Fire behaviour will be impacted by the current and forecast weather conditions; increased fire behaviour and smoke are expected,” the BCWS said.
Today (Tuesday, July 15), ground crews and heavy equipment are focusing on the western and northwestern flanks of the fire, where they are expanding and improving a control line using existing roads. Helicopters are providing bucketing support to suppress the more active areas of the fire perimeter and are also supporting ground crew operations,” the BCWS said.
Additional ground crews are arriving Tuesday and Wednesday and will focus on bolstering water delivery systems and direct attack along the western and northwestern flanks of the wildfire.
Original story is here.
