B.C.'s coolest weather in a month aids wildfire fight

The warmer-than-usual weatherinBritishColumbia eased off Thursday, helping firefighters battle more than 400 blazes across the province.

TheB.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) says cooler conditionsand rain in the north moved into the central Interior on Wednesday, moving temperatures closer to seasonal norms for the first time in a month.

Itsays the favourable forecast is giving crews a chance to make even more progress on fighting fires. In the past week, more than 260 fires have been extinguished, according to the BCWS. Some areas have also rescinded their evacuation orders and alerts.

However, there are still more than420fires actively burning in B.C. They includefive blazes"of note," which are classifiedas "wildfires that are highly visible or pose a potential threat to public safety."

About1,400 people arecurrently under an evacuation order in the province, according to a Thursday afternoon social media post byB.C. Emergency Management MinisterBowinn Ma.

Crews have been battling a spike in wildfires since the weekend, when dry weather and a heat wave were followed by tens of thousands of lightning strikes thattriggerednumerous fires.

Evacuation orders in the Kootenay

On Thursday afternoon, the Regional District of East Kootenay(RDEK) placedthe Whiteswan Lake area under an evacuation order due to theMt. Morrowildfire, which is about 114 square kilometres. The district says the ordercovers fourproperties as well as Home Basin Campground and Inlet Creek Campground.

Around the same time, the RDEK also issued an evacuation order fornine properties inthe Palliser and Cross River Area due to the Raven's Head wildfire. This affects theNipika Mountain Resort and the Cross River Canyon Recreation Site.

In the Central Kootenay,Glacier Creek Regional Park was temporarily closed Thursday at noon due to wildfires in theDuncan Reservoir area.

In West Kootenay,residents of Silverton were ordered to leave thevillage of about 200 peoplein response to theadvancingAylwin Creek fireWednesday night.

The Town of Golden in southeastern B.C. also issued an evacuation orderlate Wednesday for various areas threatened by a 1.33-square-kilometre blaze to the south.

By Thursday afternoon, the town haddowngraded the evacuationorder for some propertieson the east side of Highway 95 to an alert, alongside a long list of other properties. The order remains for certain properties on the west side of the highway.

Ron Oszust, mayor of Golden, also said Thursdaythat six homes have been lost near the town.

The town's website saidearlier in the daythat authorities are focusedon "saving as many structures as possible" from the Dogtooth Forest Service Road fire that has prompted orders for several properties either side of the Columbia River and Highway 95to leave.

WATCH| Homes destroyed by wildfire south of Golden:

Homes destroyed by wildfire south of Golden, B.C.

29 days ago

Duration 0:36

Several homes in Nicholson, south of Golden in B.C.'s Kootenay region, were completely destroyed by a fast-moving wildfire. Local authorities say they believe a total of six homes have been lost.

The town says the Dogtooth blaze remains active, but the weather was working in favour of firefighters.

Highway 95 was closed between Golden and Radium Hot Springs to the south, but the town says it reopened Thursday afternoon.Access will still be restricted in areas under the evacuation order, it said.

LISTEN | Mayor talks about the fast moving wildfire threatening his Goldencommunity:

Radio West9:38A fast moving wildfire burning south of Golden forced people living on 100 properties in the Parson area to flee their homes on Wednesday

A fast moving wildfire burning south of Golden forced people living on 100 properties in the Parson area to flee their homes on Wednesday

Environment Canada is forecasting highs in the low or mid-20s in parts of the Interior, includingKamloops, Kelowna and Lytton, where temperatures breached 40 C just days ago.

Temperatures in the northern Interior, includingPrinceGeorgeand Williams Lake, are forecast to remain in the mid-teens.

Some areas rescindevacuation orders, alerts

Wells residents can now return home, the district said Thursday evening in a Facebook post after rescinding the days-long evacuation order. It added that the community will still beon an alert in response to theAntler Creek wildfire.

Bowron Lake and the historic town of Barkerville, however, remain evacuated.

Around 2,000 residents of Ashcroftare also nowwithout an evacuation alert for the first time in six days, after it was rescinded Thursday afternoon. But an alert could be issued again if necessary, according totheThompson-Nicola Regional District (TNRD).

The village was facing threats from the 225-square-kilometreShetland Creek blaze, one of the most severe wildfires in B.C. The fire near Spences Bridge, around 180 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, has destroyed about 20 structures including at least six homes in the Venables Valley, according to theTNRD.

Also on Thursday afternoon, theCariboo Regional District rescinded the evacuationorder for the Kuyakuz Lake Area, after issuing it on July 21.

Fires burn across B.C.

On southern VancouverIsland, the Old Man Lake wildfire is burningout of control about nine kilometres north of Sooke.

A BCWS update says that fire, at just under one square kilometre in size, has seen some growth but the spread has been "away from any structures or critical infrastructure," according to Julia Caranci with the Coastal Fire Centre.

"We have not recommended any evacuation alerts or orders associated with this incident currently," Caranci saidin an update posted on YouTube.

According to the Capital Regional District, the wildfire is burning a few kilometres south of the Sooke Lake Reservoir, which is part of the water supply area for about 350,000 people in GreaterVictoria.

The district has enacted a number of recreational closures due to the wildfire, including closing Sooke Potholes Regional Park, the Spring Salmon Place Campground and access to Kapoor Regional Park.