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Officials reopened Highway 1 through British Columbia’s Fraser Canyon on Saturday, but warned that active wildfire operations continue in the area.
The route had been closed since July 7, as the Brunswick wildfire complex near Boston Bar expanded rapidly in size.
As of Saturday morning, the Brunswick Creek wildfire on the west side of the canyon was burning at 28.36 square kilometres (2,836 hectares) and the Ainslie Creek wildfire on the east side was burning at 158.47 sq. km. (15,847 ha).
A slight break in the weather is giving wildfire crews a chance to make progress in B.C.’s Fraser Canyon. But as the CBC’s Shivani Joshi reports, officials warn the cooler conditions won’t last, as two out-of-control wildfires continue to threaten communities near Boston Bar.
Both fires remain out of control, and multiple evacuation orders and alerts remain in effect.
DriveBC said Saturday morning that while Highway 1 had reopened, there was only one lane active in each direction and a speed limit of 60 km/h was in effect.
No stopping is permitted in the wildfire zone, and drivers are urged to watch for signage and crews.
“This was an issue we had previous to the highway closing down, we had issues with numerous folks pulling over at pullouts to take pictures and videos of the fire,” B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) fire information officer Julia Caracni told CBC News.
“We really ask folks to please keep driving and do not stop or enter into any active wildfire areas.”
Caranci added that the wildfire service was taking advantage of cloud cover and a slight dip in temperatures to push ahead with direct attacks on both fires.
“We are focused on that southeast corner of the (Brunswick Creek) fire above North Bend and Boston Bar, we have been bucketing that portion of the fire during the day and into the overnight period as the fire slowly backs down the slope,” she said.
“We also have crews stationed along the bottom, at valley bottom, where that fire is backing down and they’re going to meet the fire on workable ground where it is safe to do so.”
Crews are also ramping up ground and air direct attacks on portions of the Ainsley Creek fire that are accessible, she said.
Both fires are burning in steep, mountainous alpine terrain, Caranci said.
Favourable weather conditions are forecast to persist through the weekend before the wind and heat return on Monday and Tuesday, the Caranci said.
The fires in the Brunswick complex are suspected to have been human-caused, a designation given to any fire not ignited by lightning.
As of Saturday, there were 18 active wildfires burning in B.C., four of them classified as out of control.
