Crews begin constructing fuel-free guard for Battleship Mountain Wildfire

HUDSON’S HOPE, B.C. – Fire crews have begun building a fuel-free guard south of Carbon Lake in an attempt to establish some control of the Battleship Mountain Wildfire, which as of late Tuesday morning sits at 11,049 hectares.

The BC Wildfire Service says that operations staff are also developing an ignition plan for the southwest corner of the fire to build containment in the area as conditions allow.

A contingency guard is also reportedly being constructed from the centre of Johnson Forest Service Road east towards Williston Lake.

The Wildfire Service had struggled to bring in heavy equipment to help fight the fire to the terrain in the area. The Johnson Forest Service road runs through the area of the fire. A new bridge was installed this year but couldn’t handle the weight of a truck carrying heavy equipment.

The service adds that access along the Burns Forest Service Road is being repaired to provide access to the southwest flank of the fire so that heavy equipment can begin working in the area.

Helicopters are continuing bucketing operations, which involve scooping water from local lakes and dropping it on the fire.

According to the Battleship Complex Information Team, the wildfire is still out of control, however, high winds did not challenge crews as anticipated on Monday,

The team says fire growth was minimal on Tuesday, which allowed crews to progress on their goals.

According to the BCI team, winds have weakened in the area but have not died down entirely.

Aggressive fire behaviour was observed in this blaze, mainly to the northeast. The wind was reportedly the leading cause of growth.

Warm and dry conditions and the head of the fire resulted in “rank 4” fire behaviour.

According to BC Wildfire Service, this means a “highly vigorous surface fire with torching or passive crown fire” with a moderate to fast rate of speed, short aerial bursts through the forest canopy, and short-range spotting.

The latest update says structure protection personnel are working on establishing a response plan for the WAC Bennet Dam and working with BC Hydro to establish familiarity with the dam.

Structure protection staff continue to maintain established structure protection set-ups in the Carbon Lake area. They are conducting further area assessments as needed.

The District of Hudson’s Hope declared a state of local emergency and issued an evacuation order for portions of the district. The rest of the district remains on evacuation alert.

The Peace River Regional District issued an evacuation order for areas surrounding Kelly Lake and expanded the existing evacuation alert.

The PRRD is offering to help evacuate animals from Kelly Lake and says residents shouldn’t try and return to the area but instead should contact the District to arrange assistance.

If you need help, contact the Emergency Operations Centre at 1-800-670-7773.

For the latest updates on forest fires in the B.C. Peace click here.