Friday night proved to be another challenging night on the Lower East Adams Lake fire.
On Saturday morning, the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) said the fire, along with the Bush Creek East fire were pushed by significant northerly winds to “extreme” fire growth in a southern direction.
“This was one of the most challenging nights for first responders, including structural fire departments, search and rescue, wildland firefighters, local governments and all others involved this summer,” says the BCWS.
The Lower East Adams Lake (K21620) and Bush Creek East (K21633) wildfires were pushed by significant northerly winds to extreme fire growth in a southward direction yesterday evening into the night. pic.twitter.com/3hO1FsZIP9
— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 19, 2023
Tragically, the agency confirms that the spread of the fire has impacted communities in the North Shuswap.
The Bush Creek wildfire jumped across Highway 1 between Chase and Sorrento late Friday night.
The Trans Canada Highway through the Shuswap remains closed.
⛔️ REMINDER - #BCHwy1 CLOSED between #Sorrento and #ChaseBC due to wildfire. Alternate route available via #BCHwy97 and #BCHwy97A
— DriveBC (@DriveBC) August 19, 2023
ℹ️ For more info: https://t.co/dEQtjKthS2
As of 11 am, there fire remained north of Lee Creek and has not moved into the community.
Tragically, the fire moved into Scotch Creek and the outskirts of Celista and there has been an unconfirmed number of structure losses.
“The entire firefighting community would like to acknowledge last night's impact on residents in the Shuswap Lake area. We are working tirelessly to get people back into their homes and reduce further impacts,” says the BCWS.
The Lower East Adams Lake fire continues to be estimated at 10,000 hectares and the Bush Creek East fire is at 3,287 hectares.
Expanded evacuation orders and alerts are expected to be issued by both the Thompson-Nicola Regional District (TNRD) and Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) on Saturday.
At 10 pm, the CSRD issued a public announcement saying the region was facing an “unparalleled crisis.”
Public Service Announcement: August 18th 2023 @ 10:00pmhttps://t.co/fUlUXVf5XS#CSRD #BCWildfire #SEP pic.twitter.com/eymXV8C7vl
— Columbia Shuswap Regional District (@ColShuRegDist) August 19, 2023
“We find ourselves in an unparalleled crisis as the Shuswap faces its most devastating wildfire day in history. Prioritizing your safety is paramount,” the statement said.
Evacuation orders remain in effect for Scotch Creek, Lee Creek, Magna Bay and the Little River Road area.
The community of Chase, which is under the TNRD’s jurisdiction, remains on evacuation alert.
Shortly before 4 am, the CSRD issued an evacuation alert for Sorrento.
For a full list of evacuation notices, or to search for your address, visit the Thompson-Nicola Regional District and Columbia Shuswap Regional District websites.
Below is a list of evacuation notices that have been issued since about 2 pm on Friday through to 7:40 am on Saturday for the North Shuswap area.
Columbia Shuswap Regional District: Evacuation Order for all of Lee Creek and Scotch Creek areas. https://t.co/8e4vMDY3yx pic.twitter.com/1tlv9vCpsa
— Columbia Shuswap Regional District (@ColShuRegDist) August 18, 2023
Columbia Shuswap Regional District: Evacuation Order for Celista area up to Evans Road. https://t.co/5ZGU0qrzdx pic.twitter.com/kZ30XRReEb
— Columbia Shuswap Regional District (@ColShuRegDist) August 18, 2023
Columbia Shuswap Regional District: Evacuation Order Alert for Little River Road area. https://t.co/MrQEKtLiVP pic.twitter.com/aGrRzl5cQc
— Columbia Shuswap Regional District (@ColShuRegDist) August 19, 2023
Columbia Shuswap Regional District: Evacuation Order expanded for all of Magna Bay area. https://t.co/w3jhGFohcO pic.twitter.com/2iuirZQ5vB
— Columbia Shuswap Regional District (@ColShuRegDist) August 19, 2023
Aug 19 7:30 am update:
— Columbia Shuswap Regional District (@ColShuRegDist) August 19, 2023
The Evacuation Orders and Alerts remain the same as they were last night with the addition of the Sorrento area Evacuation Alert issued early this morning. As soon as we have more information we will be providing updates.#CSRD #SEP #CSRDStrong pic.twitter.com/F5xjMoKrrw
