Properties in B.C. ski resort community told to evacuate as wildfire nears
More than 200 properties in the B.C. Interior resort community of Apex Mountain Village have been ordered to evacuate as firefighters continue to battle a wildfire in the area.
The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen issued an evacuation order for the area on Monday morning because of the Keremeos Creek wildfire to the southwest of Penticton, B.C., in the province's southern Interior. Dozens of other properties in Apex Mountain are on evacuation alert as well.
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The ski resort has been using its snowmaking machines to blast mist at buildings in an attempt to protect them from the blaze.
The fire, which was discovered on Friday, was last estimated at 4.4 square kilometres in size and is confirmed to have destroyed one structure so far.
A snow gun blows water over a structure near the Apex Mountain resort on Sunday as the Keremeos Creek wildfire moves closer to the resort. (Tom Popyk/CBC)
The cause of the wildfire is still under investigation, but it has already forced a number of other evacuation orders and alerts in the area.
A second significant wildfire in the Interior, the Nohomin Creek fire to the northwest of Lytton, was holding steady at about 29 square kilometres on Monday morning.
According to the B.C. Wildfire Service, conditions on the fire remained hot and dry on Sunday, but afternoon fire activity did not increase as much as it had on previous days.
The story was originally published for CBC News on Aug. 1, 2022.
