B.C. firefighters’ efforts hampered by recreational boaters on Okanagan Lake: officials

KELOWNA, B.C. – Though the nearby wildfires have prompted multiple air quality warnings and evacuation alerts, boaters on Okanagan Lake are trying to enjoy the best of a British Columbian summer and are causing problems for firefighters working in the area by doing so.

Glen Burgess of the the BC Wildfire Service says the boaters are delaying firefighters' efforts to scoop up water from the lake and forced crews to request the RCMP's help keeping the public away from the lake.

He says the boaters were getting too close to firecrews' helicopters and skimmers — amphibious planes that can hold more than 3,000 litres of water or fire-retardant chemicals and use the lake as a bucketing tool and water source.

Burgess says the fire near Goode's Creek, roughly 20 kilometres south of Kelowna, B.C., has spread down to the shore, but that was not stopping people from spending time in well-known recreational areas.

Fire Information Officer Noelle Kekula says she's frustrated that boaters are not heeding repeated warnings.

The wildfire in Okanagan Mountain provincial park has grown to nearly 14 square kilometres and is classified as out of control by the BC Wildfire Service.