Over the last week, there have been 126 new fire starts as well as 1,600 lightning strikes across the Southeast Fire Centre as conditions continue to be tinder dry amid soaring temperatures.
A number of large fires are currently burning in both the West and East Kootenay, as ground crews, aviation resources, heavy equipment, and structure protection teams have been working on clusters of fires throughout the region.
New and current fires are assessed and responded to based on a priority sequence, starting with fires that are in — or have the potential to impact — the wildland urban interface or critical infrastructure, according to the Southeast Fire Centre.
Since Monday evening (July 22), atmospheric instability has increased wind in many areas of the Kootenays. Increased winds, combined with low relative humidity and current fuel conditions, have caused fires to become more active and visible to surrounding areas.
Two large Wildfires of Note are burning in the West Kootenay — the Alywin Creek wildfire and the Komonko Creek wildfire, both of which are in close proximity to each other near Silverton in the Slocan Valley.
Over a hundred properties south of Silverton are on evacuation order, while others, including the village itself, are under an evacuation alert.
The Village of Slocan is under an evacuation alert, while a number of nearby rural properties are on evacuation order due to the Mulvey Creek and Ponderosa Forest Service Road (FSR) wildfires.
An incident management team from Australia has been deployed to the region and have taken command of the Slocan Lake complex, including the Aylwin Creek, Komonoko Creek, Nemo Creek, Ponderosa FSR, Mulvey wildfires (and others) beginning July 23rd.
In the East Kootenay, a number of homes in and around the Akisqnuk First Nation north of Fairmont Hot Springs remain on evacuation alert due to the Madias Creek fire.
Two homes remain on evacuation order, while 65 homes remain on evacuation alert due to the Island Pond wildfire south of Canal Flats.
The Mount Morro wildfire is burning remotely in Top of the World provincial park northeast of Cranbrook. It is up to 3,700 hectares in size and smoke is highly visible.
Area restrictions are now in effect for the Mount Lavina (N71098), Dry Creek (N41079), and Blaeberry River (N41259), wildfires. Additional area restrictions are being considered and can be implemented quickly if required.
