Wildfires near Big White not as big as originally estimated

B.C. Wildfire Service crews continue to work on fires near Big White Ski Resort.

The Long Loch Fire is estimated to be 60 hectares in size, a downgrade from yesterday’s size of 100 hectares since the service has been able to see through the smoke to get a better estimate on size, said fire information officer Shaelee Stearns.

The Derickson Lake fire is now mapped at 1,140 hectares, also a decrease from its original mapping size of 1,300 hectares yesterday. The blazes are still out of control.

A third fire has also started in the area, near Lees Lake, July 2 and is mapped at 0.36 hectares but Stearns did not have an update on the fire. The fire was started by lightning.

In the Kamloops Fire Centre, there are currently five large wildfires that have prompted evacuation orders and alerts.

The Sparks Lake wildfire is currently the centre’s largest, located northwest of Kamloops and mapped at 31,000 hectares in size.

Fires in the City of Kamloops which prompted evacuations earlier this week for Juniper and Valleyview residents, are now under control as of today, July 3.


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Carli Berry

Carli Berry has been telling stories in the Okanagan for the past three years and after finding her footing in the newspaper industry, joined the Infonews team in January 2020. Recipient of the 2019 MA Murray award for feature writing, Carli is passionate about stories that involve housing, business and the environment. Born on Vancouver Island, she is happy to say Okanagan Lake reminds, her slightly, of the ocean. Carli can be reached at (250) 864-7494 or email cberry@infonews.ca.