British Columbia’s wildfire count surged past 100 this weekend after roughly 4,000 lightning strikes ignited a wave of new blazes across the province, according to the BC Wildfire Service. As of Saturday morning, 113 fires were active, with approximately 100 starting since Friday—up from just 20 on Wednesday.
Rapid escalation in B.C. wildfire season
The BC Wildfire Service attributed the majority of the new fires to Friday’s lightning activity. Two-thirds of the blazes are currently burning out of control, with most concentrated in the southern B.C. Interior. Fire officials had previously warned of a weather system creating ideal conditions for both ignition and spread across the province’s parched landscape.
Evacuation orders and alerts expand
Local authorities issued multiple evacuation orders and alerts in response to the growing fires. The Thompson-Nicola Regional District ordered the evacuation of 131 properties near Big Bar Lake and Meadow Lake due to the Fiftynine Creek fire, which also triggered an alert for the Bonaparte Plateau. The Cariboo Regional District followed with an evacuation order for the Bowers Lake fire and an alert for the Lessard Lake fire.
The Fiftynine Creek fire, detected Friday, had already grown to about 40 square kilometers by that evening. As the weather system moved into Alberta, officials anticipated additional lightning strikes and further fire starts in the coming days.
Firefighting response intensifies
More than 500 firefighters have been deployed to combat the blazes across British Columbia. The sudden increase in fire activity has strained resources, with crews prioritizing containment efforts amid the rapidly changing conditions.
