News Brief: The 2024 wildfire season was far less destructive than the previous year, but saw thousands placed on evacuation alerts
So far this year, a quarter of wildfires were human-caused. (Wikimedia Commons/Shawn Cahill)
British Columbia’s 2024 wildfire season is the fourth-worst in the province’s history, with more than a million hectares burned, following the worst season on record last year. Wildfires in the 2023 season totaled 2,245, with 85 of them spilling into this year in the form of holdover fires by mid-May.
From April 1 to Sept. 15, a quarter of wildfires were human-caused while 73 per cent were ignited by lightning, according to the BC Wildfire Service. Increased lightning storms are expected to rise as climate change accelerates, and experts warn lightning events will continue to be more frequent.
The 2024 wildfire season is far from over. Hopes were looking up toward the end of August since increased rain events and cooler weather tapered off fires in southern B.C., beginning a trend of reduced blaze numbers.
As of Sept. 15, there were 212 active wildfires burning in B.C., affecting the southwest, southeast, central, and northeastern parts of the province, with 31 wildfires considered to be out of control, the BC Wildfire Service also reported.
In early September, the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako informed residents of a remote area about 80 kilometres south of Burns Lake to be ready to evacuate their homes when the out-of-control Sabrina Lake wildfire expanded beyond containment lines to about 411 square kilometres.
In the interior of B.C., the Shetland Creek wildfire doubled in size overnight, merging with another nearby wildfire in July. It destroyed 40-to-50 structures and triggered an evacuation alert affecting around 2,000 residents in the area, which later expanded to about 85 properties and 120 people nearby.
An evacuation alert stemming from the Komonko Creek and Aylwin Creek wildfires in the Kootenay region affected thousands of people, burned 655 hectares of forest, and destroyed several structures in July.
For residents in and around Fort Nelson in the northeastern corner of the province, fires were unrelenting throughout the year, with 4,700 people in Fort Nelson and the Fort Nelson First Nation being asked to leave their homes for two weeks in May after the Parker Lake wildfire grew to 53 square kilometres overnight.
The area continued to be plagued with wildfires into the summer, when another staggering 224-hectare blaze was discovered less than 100 kilometres from Fort Nelson. There are a number of fires in the northeastern corner of the province near Fort Nelson, including the Nogah Creek fire, which has reached 501,824 hectares and remains out of control since first being discovered in May at just 500 hectares.
On Vancouver Island, a wildfire at Old Man Lake near Sooke ran out of control, closing campgrounds and parks, including the Sooke Potholes, and is one of the human-caused wildfires this year. It is now marked as under control after burning 230 hectares of regional park land.
Anyone who sees or actively suspects a wildfire is urged to contact 1-800-663-5555, text *5555 from a cellphone, or use the BC Wildfire Services (BCWF) app.
