Wildfire near Okanagan Falls grows to 1,500 ha

A wildfire burning near Okanagan Falls has grown in size due to dry and hot weather conditions.

The Thomas Creek fire, located 1.5 kilometres east of Shaka Lake, grew to 1,500 hectares yesterday, July 13.

READ MORE: Wildfire near Okanagan Falls grows to 1,100 ha

B.C. Wildfire Service information officer Aydan Coray said the fire grew due to the hot, dry and windy conditions throughout the day.

There were four personnel and two water tenders that stayed on the fire overnight, she said, but she didn’t have an update on the number of firefighters on scene this morning, July 14.

Fire crews are focusing on the west flank of the fire, the one closest to houses, she said.

“They’re working to build guards with assistance from heavy equipment and doing controlled ignition throughout the area,” Coray said.

Roughly 700 homes are on evacuation alert due to the fire. For more information on evacuation alerts and orders for this wildfire, visit the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen’s website.

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