It was one step forward, two steps back in the VanJam fire zone this week.
A combination of increased heat and winds helped stoke ongoing fires and heighten fire activity in the area.
Chris Marchand, a Fire Information Officer from Ontario who is working in the zone, said “We have seen a fairly increased level of fire behaviour… particularly in the afternoons when the winds are at their peak.”
Even though temperatures are supposed to dip lower in the coming days, Marchand said the next 48 hours could be challenging ones.
“Accompanying a drop in temperatures, we expect to see high winds out of the Northwest gusting up to 40km per hour,” he explained. “As well, there’s not much to look forward to in terms of precipitation that could have a meaningful effect on these persistently dry conditions.”
There are still two wildfires of note in the area – the only two wildfires of note in the entire Prince George Fire Centre – Greer Creek and Great Beaver Lake, both west of Vanderhoof.
Great Beaver Lake is currently 4,352 hectares large, Greer creek is 4,672 hectares large.
Marchand is a part of a 15-person Incident Management Team in from Ontario who are working in the area, 100 Mexican firefighters are also still hard at work.
Over 1.6 million hectares have been burned in the province this fire season, the most ever recorded in BC.
Of them, 1,329,192 have been burned in the Prince George Fire Centre over 565 different fires.
There are currently 136 fires burning in the Prince George Fire Centre.