kelsey winter

Weekend of fires fuelled by lightning

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – There were 35 fire starts this weekend in the Kamloops Fire Centre alone. Of those, 22 were caused by lightning, but the remaining 13 were believed to be human-caused. Penticton was the hottest fire zone in the region with 19 of the 35 starts this weekend, but Fire Information Officer Kelsey Winter says...

VIDEO: Smith Creek fire from above and by the numbers

KELOWNA - Take a guess: How much water have fire crews dropped on the Smith Creek fire over the past week and a half? Would you believe more than 1.2 million litres? As of Monday morning helicopters had flown more than 100 hours, skimmers had dropped more than 300 loads of water and foam and...

Planning for your fire-free long weekend

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you’re planning to go camping this long weekend, B.C. Wildfire says your fun will have to be fire-free unless you have an approved fire-safe stove.  “All of the (Thompson-Okanagan) locations fall under the same campfire ban,” says Kelsey Winter, a fire information officer with the Kamloops Fire Centre. The only location without...

UPDATE: Fire burning near Sicamous smaller than originally thought

KAMLOOPS - A fire burning in a cut block east of Shuswap Lake that is ‘quite visible’ from Sicamous was likely started by lightning last night and B.C. Wildfire crews expect more of these types of fires could pop up over the next week. “There was quite a bit last night and we’re forecasting lightning...

Wildfire near Juniper Beach contained

KAMLOOPS - What began as an abandoned campfire not properly extinguished grew to a 10.6 ha fire this week, according to officials. It's believed a fire in a hay field at Juniper Beach west of Kamloops and near Wallachin started Sunday, June 8, though B.C. Wildfire crews were only called in on Monday. “The smoke...