Potential for further growth for wildfire in northeast B.C., officials say

Akshay Kulkarni · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 01, 2025 5:39 PM EDT | Last Updated: 11 hours ago

The B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) says that the Kiskatinaw River wildfire successful the northeast, which has led to evacuation orders and alerts, has the imaginable to turn successful the coming days.

The Kiskatinaw River blaze is burning adjacent to the B.C.-Alberta borderline southbound of Dawson Creek, and it covers an area of astir 30 quadrate kilometres, down from 46 quadrate kilometres connected Friday.

There has been nary important maturation connected the blaze successful the past 48 hours, the B.C. Wildfire Service said successful an update Sunday, but they added that upwind conditions were adust and windy and could situation firefighters.

"There's a flimsy accidental of airy rain, but immoderate precipitation is expected to beryllium minimal and whitethorn not importantly interaction occurrence behaviour," the work wrote successful an update.

"There is ongoing imaginable for accrued occurrence enactment and further maturation successful the coming days."

The wildfire has prompted an evacuation bid covering astir 70 radical successful the Kelly Lake area, chiefly members of the Kelly Lake Cree Nation.

Emergency enactment services for evacuees person been extended by the Peace River Regional District (PRRD), which said successful an update Sunday that it was extending enactment until June 8.

"This determination was made retired of an abundance of caution based connected recommendations from [B.C.] Wildfire Service owed to uncertain occurrence conditions," the PRRD said successful a statement.

The Kiskatinaw River wildfire is presently B.C.'s lone "wildfire of note", which means it is peculiarly disposable oregon poses a menace to nationalist safety.

Officials accidental that firefighters are gathering containment lines on the edges of the blaze, and straight attacking the occurrence wherever possible.

"Helicopters are dropping h2o successful areas wherever the occurrence is astir active, to dilatory the dispersed and marque it safer for crews connected the ground," the BCWS says.

The work added that operation extortion unit were connected tract successful the Kelly Lake area, arsenic good arsenic the adjacent One Island Lake area.

The out-of-control Kiskatinaw River occurrence is burning adjacent to the Pembina Steeprock state processing installation and Highway 52 East, which has been partially closed arsenic a result.

Homes astir Kelly Lake — about 80 kilometres southbound of Dawson Creek and instantly adjacent to the B.C.-Alberta borderline — were placed connected evacuation bid Thursday.

The bid besides covers areas northbound of Campbell Lake — west of Tent Lake, southbound of Twin Lakes, and eastbound of the Alberta border.

As of Sunday afternoon, determination were 65 progressive wildfires successful B.C., astir of which were caused by lightning.