The village of Ashcroft is being evacuated as wildfires continue to burn and spread.
According to the BC Wildfire Service, the fire has expanded quickly from 50 to 700 hectares in a matter of hours.
Chief Fire Information Officer Kevin Skrepnek says evacuation has been ordered to more than 3,600 homes as the blaze has already engulfed buildings on the local reserve
“Because we’re in the midst of responding, it’s not clear to what degree yet or what structures we’re talking about.”
Skrepnek adds almost 50 firefighters are currently battling the blaze and aircrafts have been called to help as well.
Currently hot, smoky, windy in #ashcroft #ashcroftfire #scary #bcwildfire pic.twitter.com/mWVRCIK21l
— Jennifer Vance (@vancejennifer) July 7, 2017
Drive BC says major roads have been closed in both directions, including Highway 1 and Highway 97C.
BC Hydro says power is out in the area for more than 2,000 people.
We’ll be investigating some outages in #AshcroftBC #CacheCreekBC affecting over 2000 customers. Watch for updates at https://t.co/p39mQb39zj pic.twitter.com/edbDvqpecu
— BC Hydro (@bchydro) July 7, 2017
BREAKING: An estimated 50-hectare wildfire is burning near #BCHwy1 & #BCHwy97C; #AshcroftBC under evac orders | #NorthernBC pic.twitter.com/WAp53ksJB3
— My Prince George Now (@mypgnow) July 7, 2017
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