B.C. fires: West Kelowna evacuation alert lifted

An evacuation alertfor70 properties inWest Kelowna, B.C.hasbeen lifted because of cooler, wet weather.

On Friday, anevacuation orderfor the city on Okanagan Lake wasdowngraded to an evacuation alert.

On Sunday afternoon thatalertwas lifted.

B.C. Wildfire Servicesays the blaze near Okanagan Lakeis now 75 per cent contained thanks to firefighting efforts and favourable weather.

Crews continue to monitor and work on the fire; residents are encouraged to be prepared in case conditions change.

Rain brings welcome relief

Rain has brought relief to crews fighting wildfires around B.C., especially in the southeast and Kamloops districts.

"There's finally some precipitation in the forecast for the south, certainly an area that could use it right now," saidFire Information Officer RyanTurcotwith the B.C. Wildfire Service.

The rain isn'tenough to soak the parched ground,but it is a help, said Turcot.

Thanks to the cooler, wetter weather, only 13 new fires were sparked on Friday, compared to around 100 new starts last Monday.

"That's still 13 more than we'd like to see, but definitely a lot better than what we were seeing earlier this week," said Turcot.

Turcot saidunsettled forecasts for the southern areasof the provinceare expected to continue throughout the day and possibly into Monday, although the associated winds and lightning could start more fires.

There are approximately 200 active fires burning in B.C.;148 of those were caused bylightning.