Fire gets to within 4 km of town

Update 3: Sunday June 11, 10 am

Update 2: Saturday June 10, most recent info

Update 1: June 9, 12:30 added in interview with Brian Sullivan.

Little changed on the situation for Tumbler Ridge on Saturday.

Thursday’s winds pushed the West Kistkatinaw Fire to about 4 km from town before cooler weather and a shift in the wind stopped its forward progression.

The fire did not get past the Bearhole Lake Road, according to Karley Desrosiers.

This is the line that they are hoping to hold, she says, as if the fire gets past the road, chances are it will run quickly up the hill. The heat of the fire rises, she says, drying out the trees in front of the fire and exacerbating fire behaviour, and sending the fire directly towards the town.

As of the morning of June 10, a light rain was falling in Tumbler Ridge and the skies have cleared a little.

Nearly all residents had evacuated by 10 pm on July 8.

However, about 150 people remain behind in the town. Some to help, some thinking that they might be able to protect their properties.”At this time our message to the individuals that are not part of the Emergency Operations Centre and who have decided to stay: the best way you can help us and the responders is to evacuate yourself,” says Fire Chief Dustin Curry, who is running the Emergency Operations Centre. “We understand that’s not an easy decision to make, but we need to stress the importance of having everyone leave so we can focus our efforts in the right places.”

He says right now, crews have to not just focus their efforts on setting up fire protections in the town, but they always have to keep in mind that there are still people who may need to be evacuated if the fire comes into town.

The fire has crossed Highway 52 north and east, as well as the Noel and Hourglass roads, leaving only Highway 29 to Chetwynd unaffected.

Despite the possible impacts to infrastructure, power in the town remains on, so people don’t have to worry about their freezers and fridges.

Crews were able to put out the fires that crossed Highway 52 North, but the fire is right to the highway.

This is similar to the situation in 2006—the last time the town was evacuated due to forest fires—when two separate fires cut off possible evacuation routes from the town.

However, unlike that fire, winds have blown it much closer to town.

Residents from Tumbler Ridge filled up the available accommodation in Chetwynd and Dawson Creek and were being sent to a third reception point in Fort St. John at the Pomeroy Sports Centre. According to ESS, more than 600 people have found shelter in Chetwynd, Dawson and Fort St. John.

If you are still in need of shelter, please head to Fort St. John.

People who haven’t yet registered at any of the reception centres are also able to register on-line, at https://ess.gov.bc.ca/. Residents who have been evacuated are asked to please ensure you have registered so that emergency crews know you are safe and can contact you when it is safe to return.

The fire is estimated at 19,714 ha. That’s downgraded from a previous estimate of 23,000. Desrochiers says its been hard to get an accurate estimate due to all the smoke.

Despite hot dry and sometimes windy conditions of Friday, the fire made little progress towards town. On Saturday, the temperatures changed to cooler and less windy. But the forecast for Sunday and Monday is warmer weather, though the wind is expected to be blowing away from the town today.

In town, Wildfire crews have set structural protection on the upper bench.

According to Brian Sullivan, the Wolverine Mine has been shut down as part of the evacuation.

“At Quintette we only have one or two people at security. They’re doing double duty helping with firefighting,” says Sullivan.

The other two mines are running at a reduced staff, as people from Tumbler Ridge are not expected to show up for work. “We have a skeleton staff at both location.”

He says he’s proud of how the evacuation of the mine was handled. “My hat’s off to the employees,” he says. “There was no panic. It was very orderly. It went very well. There was good communication between all parties.”

He says now the mine is working now to address needs of people who have been evacuated. “People with pets, people with small children.”

Sullivan was in town for the Quintette party, and so he’s right now on his way out to site to pitch in and help.

Between the two fires of the South Peace Complex—Peavine Creek in the Northeast and the West Kiskatinaw Fire near Tumbler—there are 42 firefighters, nine helicopters and 34 pieces of heavy equipment, in addition to the 66 structural protection personel, who have set up equipment to protect the Water Reservoir and the houses along the ridge on Gwillim and Wapiti in case the fire gets over the ridge.