Wildfire evacuations underway in parts of Fort St. John, cellphone and internet down in Tumbler Ridge
B.C. Wildfire Service says all the fires are suspected to be human-caused
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Tactical evacuations are underway in some neighbourhoods of the city of Fort St. John in the province's northeast after a wildfire broke out on the north side of the city Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, a cluster of wildfires has disrupted transport, phone and internet service in the community of Tumbler Ridge, also in B.C.'s northeast.
The fires mark the beginning of what the province warns could be a difficult weekend due to elevated temperatures and high winds throughout B.C., with officials urging caution in the days ahead.
Fort St. John evacuations
A bulletin posted on the city of Fort St. John's website Thursday night said the fire is located in the Fish Creek Community Forest, a greenspace on the north side of the city next to the Northern Lights College campus.
The bulletin directed evacuees from Rose Prairie Road and the Jones subdivision area to proceed to the Pomeroy Sport Centre. It did not provide the number of people forced out of their homes or any further details.
Smoke is highly visible in the community, and RCMP are going door-to-door telling some residents to leave their homes, with emergency service supports set up at the sports centre.
The college says there is no immediate threat to its buildings, but is advising people who live on campus to be prepared to leave at a moment's notice.
City firefighters and members of the B.C. Wildfire Service are tackling the blaze, and several roads have been closed in the area.
The city is urging people to stay away from the area and says it will be posting updates throughout the evening.
The Fort St. John airport has temporarily grounded flights as wildfire aircraft operate in the nearby airspace, and is warning travellers to expect delays.
Kelly Greene, B.C.'s minister of emergency management, said in a social media post that she is aware of a fire "impacting" residents of Fort St. John.
Closed roads, cut off communications in Tumbler Ridge
Meanwhile, a cluster of wildfires along the highway about 74 kilometres north of Tumbler Ridge has disrupted communications.
The B.C. Wildfire Service wrote in a social media post Wednesday evening that it was responding to the fires, originally totalling five separate burns, located approximately 28.5 kilometres southwest of Dawson Creek, near the Alberta border.
As of 4 p.m., Thursday, the service said two of the wildfires had merged to be 35 hectares, or 0.35 square kilometres in size and were still out of control, with southwest winds pushing it toward Highway 52 North, with the potential for more closures.
It said the other three fires are under control. All are suspected to be human-caused.
Throughout the day, Highway 52 N, also known as Heritage Highway, near Brassey Road, was also closed and reopened to single lane alternating traffic.
And a fibre optic cable was damaged, disrupting phone and internet service in the community.
RCMP say anyone in need of police support will need to go to the detachment in person, though the district of Tumbler Ridge says 911 service remains available.
Meanwhile, the visitor information centre operated by the Tumbler Ridge UNESCO Geopark had set up a satellite internet connection and was offering its landline to anyone who needed it.
"A lot of people came in for work, you know. They've got Zoom calls that they didn't want people to think they ditched on," said executive director Manda Maggs. "I called my mom to say, by the way, you probably won't hear from me, but it's OK, I'm fine."
She said the community is experienced with communications outages, having previously lost its services due to a beaver chewing through a fibre cable in 2021.
"People were very quick to blame the beavers again," Maggs joked. "But it was the wildfires."
Elevated fire risk heading into weekend
The community is also experienced with wildfires after hundreds in the community were forced from their homes in 2023, but Maggs said so far, the sky has stayed clear, and the threat seems to be contained.
The fires come a week after the B.C. Wildfire Service warned about persisting drought conditions in the northeast region, elevating fire risk.
It said that although some parts of the province are having a less aggressive start to the fire season, much of B.C. is currently experiencing warmer-than-usual temperatures.
On Thursday afternoon, the province issued a public notice urging people to be cautious over the next several days as warm, dry conditions and strong winds are forecast throughout the Interior, elevating the fire danger.
"We are expecting active weather in the coming days that could set the stage for dangerous wildfire conditions across the province," said Ravi Parmar, the minister of forests, in the statement. "This is the time of year when we're at the most risk for human-caused wildfires in B.C., most of which are entirely preventable. As the days get longer and nicer, with more people camping or working outside, we all have a role to play in reducing wildfire risk by remaining vigilant, cautious and informed."
Updates on wildfires can be found on the B.C. Wildfire dashboard, and highway closures can be seen using DriveBC.ca or calling toll-free 1-800-550-4997.
With files from The Canadian Press