UPDATE – 9:30AM:
Almost 30 evacuation orders are in full force due to the wildfires burning across BC, displacing more than 3,000 people from their homes.
There are now more than 500 evacuees in Prince George due to blazes near Francois Lake and Fort St. James.
New evacuation orders and alerts in both the Nechako Valley and in the Bulkley Valley and Lakes District (BVLD) have been in place as of Tuesday evening, but due to limited lodging, evacuees are being forced to travel to the Northern capital.
A community meeting will be held at the Kwah Hall in #FortStJames this evening at 7PM. Representatives from the District and other agencies, supported by BC Wildfire will be present to provide an update, info on fire preparedness, and answer questions on the unfolding situation.
— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 15, 2018
The CN Centre is acting as the Emergency Operations facility from 8AM to 11PM daily.
The City is also providing free public transit and access to the PG Aquatic Centre and Four Seasons Leisure Pool.
Volunteer Prince George is asking for anyone will to help to contact them; the City is also not accepting donations at this time.
For more evacuee information on this latest update, you can click here.
For more information on all the current wildfires in the Northwest and Prince George Fire Centres, you can click here.
Wildfires south of Francois Lake and southwest of Fort St James have caused more evacuation orders in the area and evacuees continue to register in Prince George. By last night, the number of evacuees registered in PG surpassed 500. https://t.co/w8mHYjmyrW #bcwildfires pic.twitter.com/nwZmEAVPoe
— Prince George, BC (@CityofPG) August 15, 2018
ORIGINAL STORY:
As of 8:30 this morning, the BC government has declared a provincial state of emergency due to the on-going wildfire situation.
Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth made the announcement based on recommendations from members of the BC Wildfire Service and Emergency Management BC officials.
As of Tuesday, there are more than 560 wildfires burning across the province, including five major fires within the Prince George Fire Centre.
The State of Emergency will last for the next two weeks and may be extended if necessary.