The Northwest makes for one positive situation for a province facing much Wildfire danger this weekend

The Cariboo, Thompson, Okanagan and Kootenay regions
will be the focus for wildfire responders this weekend, with
a growing volume of fires reported in many areas south of Prince George
(Map from BC Wildfire Dashboard)

While British Columbia's wildfire teams take on challenges across much of the province, there's some relief found for the Northwest, with only one Wildfire of Note listed today as we head into another weekend.

That  fire is the Chief Louie Lake Fire  which was first discovered on July 7th, it is burning well south of the Burns Lake area.

Click to enlarge 

Only one fire is listed along the Highway 16 corridor between Prince Rupert and Prince George, that is the Bulkley Lake Fire, which has been listed as under control.

Click to enlarge

While cooler temperatures and some precipitation have reduced the risk in the Northwest, the situation is very different once you make the turn south at Quesnel, with much of the Interior Region facing alerts, evacuations or advisories.

Earlier this week the Province of British Columbia announced a State of Emergency related to the Wildfire situation,  which provides for additional supports and resources to communities facing wildfire dangers.

Premier Horgan, along with Katrine Conroy, the Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development have also noted that those with vacation plans in areas of concern should be aware of the situation in those areas and heed the guidance of local community officials.

This past week was one which saw the BC Wildfire Service receive reports of 76 new fires reported across BC and 17 of the 263 active fires reported over the course off the last 2 days.

 Information bulletins for fires of note can be accessed here.

With the State of Emergency in effect, the Northwest Fire Centre has prohibitions and Restrictions in place for all areas of the region from Haida Gwaii to Prince George.

(There are local exceptions such as this advisory from Terrace,  and this for Prince Rupert, consult your local community to seek out the status inside municipal limits) 

You can access more information from the BC WildFire Service Facebook page and Twitter Feed

In addition to monitoring the work of the BC Wild Fire Service, you can track any road information related to wildfire situations from the Drive BC website.

Transportation and Infrastructure BC has also provided a list of roads across the province impacted by the WildFire situation, you can access that list here.

For more notes on the 2021 Fire season in the Northwest see our archive page here.

A wider overview of the provincial situation can be explored through our D'Arcy McGee blog and our Victoria viewpoint archive.