British Columbia orders evacuations as fast-moving wildfires rage
A state of emergency was declared in Summerland, B.C., as the Bald Range wildfire forced evacuation orders for several communities and caused power outages and water advisories.
The district of Summerland in British Columbia issued evacuation orders on Saturday after the Bald Range wildfire spread rapidly across the region. Authorities declared a state of emergency early Saturday, prompting thousands of residents to leave their homes and warning of power loss and a boil-water advisory.
Emergency Info BC listed the affected areas as Peachland watershed, Brenda Mines, Lower Princeton and its downtown core, and residents were instructed to prepare to leave immediately.
"For those in the area, please keep following updates," Premier David Eby wrote on social media. "If asked to evacuate, go immediately. The conditions are changing extremely quickly."
"Summerland and Faulder and Peachland. Tonight our hearts are heavy as we watch the Bald Range wildfire. The firefighters and first responders are doing an incredible job and my heart is with them, as well as all the evacuees and volunteers," MP Amelia Boultbee said in a post.
The province has deployed about 1,500 firefighters and 39 evacuation orders and 49 alerts have been issued. International assistance has arrived from Mexico, Australia, France and New Zealand. Scientists attribute the heightened fire risk to climate-related drought and heat, following a recent heat dome that dried vegetation across western Canada and the neighboring U.S. state of Washington.