Dozens more evacuated from Lytton First Nation reserves as winds fan nearby wildfire

Around 30 to 40 more people have been told to leave their homes as a result of the latest evacuation order in the Lytton First Nation, its elected chief said.

The order was expanded Tuesday evening to eight more of the nation's reserves as strong winds fuelled the Stein Mountain wildfire burning 12 kilometres northwest of the village of Lytton, B.C., in the Fraser Canyon.

An order earlier in the day applied to four of the nation's reserves.  

Chief Niakia Hanna said the nation has private arrangements with area motels to secure rooms for evacuees.

"We have our own … evacuee services in place, so they evacuated everybody actually well before we actually finalized the formal evacuation order," Hanna said Wednesday morning on CBC's The Early Edition.

Hanna said the nation has "50 to 60 personnel" responding to the fire, which is currently around 18 square kilometres in size and burning out of control, according to the B.C. Wildfire Service.

Numerous areas around the Village of Lytton — which itself is on evacuation alert — are under evacuation orders from the Fraser Valley Regional District, Thompson-Nicola Regional District, Lytton First Nation, Skuppah Indian Band and Kanaka Bar Indian Band.

That is due to both the Stein Mountain fire and the larger Kookipi Creek wildfire south of Lytton, which is burning out of control over an estimated 136 square kilometres, the wildfire service says.

Area still recovering from 2021 and 2022 fires

The orders and alerts in the area come as communities in the area continue to recover from the 2021 Lytton Creek wildfire that destroyed the village and a 2022 fire that also resulted in the loss of homes.

"This is the third year in a row — the 2021 fire that decimated Lytton and the 2022 Nohonim fire that impacted a number of residents, including Lytton First Nation," Hanna said.

"We lost eight houses in the 2022 fire so we started working very diligently with our partners to ensure that we had systems in place for this season."

Hanna said community members are still dealing with the trauma of the last two wildfire seasons.

"The moment smoke started moving into the community over a month ago, a lot of members felt it, a lot of residents felt it. We opened up venues that normally wouldn't be open to them, allowing them to leave the community, [and provided] additional supports within the community. So, we've been very proactive in our response to date."