UPDATE: Mount Law wildfire in West Kelowna, limited structural damage

MOUNT LAW FIRE UPDATE- 8:45 a.m. Aug. 16

In response to the active Mt. Law wildfire, the following Regional Parks are closed until further notice:
Trepanier Creek Greenway Regional Park
Coldham Regional Park
Goats Peak Regional Park
Glen Canyon Regional Park
Gellatly Heritage Regional Park
Gellatly Nut Farm Regional Park

BC Wildfire will have ground crews, skimmers and helicopters attacking the fire today. West Kelowna Fire Rescue and a crew from Vernon are also on the ground helping with structure protection where safe to do so.

At some point today, direction will be taken over by the Okanagan Complex Team, which is also handling the White Rock Creek wildfire.

Evacuation orders and alerts for the Glenrosa neighbourhood and areas to the east and west continue.
www.cordemergency.ca/maps

RDCO Ops Centre says early reports indicate limited structural damage at the Mt. Law fire this morning.

Due to evolving conditions crews have not been able to complete a full assessment of structure damage. More information will be provided to property owners and the media as it becomes available.

Cooler temperatures are forecast for today and tomorrow, but fires remain out of control and are expected to be active today. Central Okanagan and BC Wildfire Fire crews will continue suppression efforts on the ground and in the air today. People are asked to stay away from areas close the fires to ensure the access and safety of first responders. Boaters should avoid areas of the lake being used by air support.

Residents in the Alert areas are advised to be ready to leave their home at a moment’s notice. They should be prepared to be away from their home for an extended period of time, consider staying with friends or family in another area of the Central Okanagan, make arrangements for pets and pack essential items such as medicines and important documents.

 

UPDATE 12:45 a.m. Aug. 16

Evacuation alert expanded for Mount Law wildfire in West Kelowna

The Mount Law wildfire remains a dynamic and evolving situation. Additional Evacuation Alerts have now been issued for 60 properties, including some within Peachland and the Regional District of the Central Okanagan (RDCO), as follows:

4305 to 4495 Maxwell Road
5039 to 5051 Trepanier Court
4965 to 4975 Venner Court
4715 to 5078 Paradise Valley Drive
4414 to 4690 Trepanier Road
4995 Trepanier Road
4850 to 5090 MacKinnon Road
The Evacuation Order for approximately 460 properties put in place earlier Sunday evening remains in effect and includes:

4713 MacKinnon Road
5000 Glenrosa Road (Bull Mountain Resort – formerly Crystal Mountain Resort)
4425 Glenrosa Road (Telemark Nordic Club)
3237 to 3530 Carre Road
3237 to 3512 Corine Road
3372 to 3725 Emerald Road
3496 Fenton Road
3318 to 3475 Gill Road
3280 to 3802 Glenrosa Road
3301 to 3583 McKellar Road
3230 to 3525 Preston Road
3325 to 3770 Turnbull Road
All properties east of Gates Rd. to Glenrosa Rd.
Residents on Evacuation Order should leave their properties immediately.

Properties that remain on Evacuation Alert include:

All other properties in the Glenrosa neighbourhood
226 properties in the area west of Glen Canyon and Goats Peak, inclusive of 3801 Gellatly Road south (north end) to 300 Seclusion Bay Rd (south end).
Residents in the Alert area are advised to be ready to leave their home at a moment’s notice. They should be prepared to be away from their home for an extended period of time, consider staying with friends or family in another area of the Central Okanagan, make arrangements for pets and pack essential items such as medicines and important documents.

A detailed map is available showing affected properties at cordemergency.ca. Residents can stay informed by signing up for e-updates at cordemergency.ca.

Evacuees can pre-register with ESS online at ess.gov.bc.ca. Residents requiring assistance, including lodging, should report to the Emergency Support Services (ESS) reception centre. The Emergency Support Services (ESS) reception centre for evacuated residents specific to the Mount Law wildfire is in the gymnasium at Mount Boucherie Secondary at 2751 Cameron Road, West Kelowna.

Visitors from outside of the Central Okanagan should check DriveBC.ca to confirm highways are open before heading back home. Anyone wishing to check whether friends or family have been evacuated can use the “Find an address or place” search feature on the website at cordemergency.ca/map. Properties within the red outline are on Evacuation Order and properties within the amber outline are on Evacuation Alert.

Emergency response personnel request that the public:

Avoid the area so emergency responders can effectively perform their duties
Please only call 9-1-1 in case of emergency.
Call *5555 on a cell phone to report a wildfire.
Monitor cordemergency.ca, facebook.com/cordemergency or twitter.com/CO_emerg for official situation updates and preparedness information
For more information about this wildfire, visit cordemergency.ca, sign up for e-updates, or call the information line at 250-469-8490.

Bush Fire
At approximately 09:30 PM Sunday Kelowna Fire Department received a 911 call reporting a Brush fire north of the rail trail on Spall Road.

First arriving units reported a wind driven fire climbing rapidly up the hill towards the Kelowna Memorial city Cemetary.

Four Engines 1 Bush truck a Tender and a Command vehicle along with19 personnel responded to the incident.

The fire was held to approximately 1 acre and was held from damaging anything in the Cemetary.

Fire conditions are extreme at this time. People are urged to be fire smart and to dispose of cigarettes safely

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UPDATE: 9:40 p.m.

The Mount Law wildfire in West Kelowna (north of Highway 97C, southwest of the Glenrosa neighbourhood) continues to show aggressive behaviour. Additional equipment and firefighters are assisting from throughout the Central Okanagan.

The Evacuation Order has been expanded to include all properties east of Gates Rd. to Glenrosa Rd. Residents on Evacuation Order should leave their properties immediately.

All other properties in the Glenrosa neighbourhood remain on Evacuation Alert. Residents in the area are advised to be ready to leave their home at a moment’s notice. They should be prepared to be away from their home for an extended period of time, make arrangements for pets and pack essential items such as medicines and important documents.

A detailed map is available showing affected properties at cordemergency.ca. Residents can stay informed by signing up for e-updates at cordemergency.ca.

All residents on evacuation order should report to Emergency Social Services (ESS) reception centre to receive any assistance and lodging. Evacuees can pre-register with ESS online at ess.gov.bc.caopen_in_new. An Emergency Support Services (ESS) reception centre for evacuated residents specific to the Mt. Law wildfire has been set up at Jim Lind Arena located at 2760 Cameron Road, West Kelowna.

Emergency response personnel request that the public:

Avoid the area so emergency responders can effectively perform their duties
Please only call 9-1-1 in case of emergency.
Call *5555 on a cell phone to report a wildfire.
Monitor cordemergency.ca, facebook.com/cordemergencyopen_in_new or twitter.com/CO_emergopen_in_new for official situation updates and preparedness information

For more information about this wildfire, visit cordemergency.ca, sign up for e-updates, or call the information line at 250-469-8490.

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UPDATE 9:13 p.m. August 15

An Evacuation Alert has been expanded to include the entire Gelnrosa neighbourhood. Residents there are advised to prepare go-bags with essential and critical items and to be prepared to leave should the Alert change to an Order.

An Evacuation Order has been issued in West Kelowna for a number of properties due to the Mt. Law wildfire.

The affected properties include:

• 4713 MacKinnon Road
• 5000 Glenrosa Road (Bull Mountain Resort – formerly Crystal Mountain Resort)
• 4425 Glenrosa Road (Telemark Nordic Club)
• 3237 to 3530 Carre Road
• 3237 to 3512 Corine Road
• 3372 to 3725 Emerald Road
• 3496 Fenton Road
• 3318 to 3475 Gill Road
• 3280 to 3802 Glenrosa Road
• 3301 to 3583 McKellar Road
• 3230 to 3525 Preston Road
• 3325 to 3770 Turnbull Road

A map showing the properties affected by the order can also be found at the Central Okanagan Regional District’s Emergency Operations website.

Residents in these areas are advised to leave the area immediately.

An emergency Support Services reception centre for evacuees of the Mt. Law fire has been set up at the Jim Lind Arena.

Meantime, the Central Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre has been activated to support the B.C. Wildfire Services crews fighting the blaze.

The fire is aggressive and as the windy conditions continue, it’s expected that the fire will grow and put further properties on alerts and orders. The Central Okanagan Emergency Operations advises people keep up to date with e-updates from the CORD Emergency website.