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MERRITT HERALD FREE
THURSDAY, JULY 17, 2014 • MERRITT NEWSPAPERS
Wildfire raging in the Murray Lake area By Michael Potestio THE HERALD
reporter@merrittherald.com
An evacuation alert has been issued by the Thompson-Nicola Regional District to an estimated 35 properties on the east side of Murray Lake due to a wildfire. The lightning-caused blaze, west of Murray Lake about three kilometres from Highway 5, has grown to about 150 hectares in size and is a rank five wildfire. A rank five fire is described as “extremely vigorous.” The B.C. Wildfire Management Branch state a rappel crew, air tankers and helicopters responded to the blaze Tuesday afternoon, but fire crews had to be withdrawn as the fire was too dangerous, given its aggressive behaviour. “The conditions were [such] that they couldn’t stop the fire when it was small, so it did continue to grow and they were tactically removed from the fire earlier today for safety reasons,” fire information officer Kayla Pepper told the Herald. She said the 35 properties consist of houses and cabins. The fire is about five kilometres from those structures. The evacuation alert means that people in the vicinity of the fire are to be ready to evacFor all your landscaping needs call the professionals at
uate should the situation change, Pepper said. “There is a wildfire in the vicinity of Murray Lake and the wildfire poses an imminent threat to people and property,” a TNRD press release stated. “An evacuation alert has been issued to prepare you to evacuate your premises and property should it be found necessary. Residents will be given as much advance warning as possible prior to the evacuation; however, you may receive limited notice due to changing conditions,” the press release went on to state. The TNRD also stated that with the alert in effect people should locate all family members, gather essential items such as eyeglasses, medication and important papers. People should also be prepared to move disabled persons and children, collect pets and, if possible, move livestock to a safe area. If an evacuation is required, the TNRD stated people in the Murray Lake area will need to exit the area by travelling south along Maka-Murray FSR to the intersection of Highway 5. Yesterday, fire suppression efforts were renewed in the form of helicopters bucketing water and heavy machinery being used to establish a fire guard, fire information officer
The Maka-Murray wildfire as seen from the air. The blaze began on Monday south of Merritt and has since grown to 100 hectares in size. The Thompson Nicola Regional District issued an evacuation alert to 35 properties near Murray Lake. B.C. Wildfire Management Branch
Kelsey Winter said. She also said there were 20 firefighters battling the blaze. The wildfire began Monday. As of the Merritt Herald’s press deadline, the fire was reduced to a rank three. The evacuation alert was still in effect and hadn’t been extended to an order to evacuate. There is also a fire burning west of Penticton near Apex Mountain. The Wildfire Management Branch
Fire ban issued Yesterday a campfire ban went into effect throughout the Kamloops Fire Centre. Currently the fire danger rating is high throughout the Kamloops Fire Centre,
with scattered pockets labelled extreme. Due to the trend of warm and dry weather recently, wildfires in the region have been aggressive and have required additional fire suppression resources. Open burning is also prohibited throughout the Kamloops Fire Centre. This prohibition applies to open fires of any size, fires with a burn registration number, industrial burning, fireworks, tiki torches,
sky lanterns and burning barrels. The open burning prohibition covers all BC Parks, Crown and private lands. The fine for violating the fire ban is up to $345. To report a violation of the campfire ban within the Kamloops Fire Centre, please call 1-844-NRO-TIPS (1-844 676-8477). So far this year, the Kamloops Fire Centre has responded
to 157 wildfires that have burned over 692 hectares. In total, 98 of those fires were humancaused and 59 were caused by lightning. The 10-year average for the fire centre for this time of year is 196 fires burning over 2,000 hectares. There are 18 active fires in the Kamloops Fire Centre. To report a wildfire, call 1-800-663-5555 toll-free or dial *5555 on your cellphone.
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estimates that fire to be 35 hectares in size. There were about 13 firefighters working to contain the blaze Wednesday morning. The fire is suspected to be human-caused.
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