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Shuswap firefighters assisting efforts to contain wildfire near Penticton

Several small wildfires burning in the Columbia-Shuswap
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Team Leader Kara Slous, left, and Firefighter Matthew Denny work on fire suppression activities for the Keremeos Creek Fire southwest of Penticton. (CSRD photo)

Several small wildfires are burning in the Shuswap, all in remote areas where no structures are threatened.

The Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) said Wednesday morning, Aug. 3, that the Shuswap Emergency Program is receiving regular updates from BC Wildfire Service regarding blazes in the region sparked by recent lightning activity.

Several of those fires have been removed from the BC Wildfire Dashboard, with six fires remaining, said the CSRD in a media release.

“Of those, only one fire near the North Humamilt Forest Service Road is classified as out of control, but it remains under one hectare in size,” reads the release. “The remaining five fires are classed as ‘being held’ or are new fire reports. Three of these fires are north of Seymour Arm, another east of Malakwa at Tumble Creek and the final one is at Vegetation Creek in a remote area of the North Shuswap.”

The Shuswap Emergency Program has not been activated in response to the wildfires.

The CSRD noted six firefighters from fire departments in the regional district have stepped up to help with firefighting efforts at the Keremeos Creek wildfire southwest of Penticton. The two teams are supporting BC Wildfire’s efforts with structure protection and fire suppression.

“We extend our appreciation to Kara Slous, Tony Smith, Matthew Denny, Warren Van Zyl, Kelsey Phillips and Trevor Broadbent for their hard work,” said the CSRD.

If you see plumes of smoke or have a concern about a possible new fire, call *5555 on mobile or 1-800-663-5555. You can also report a fire on the new BC Wildfire app.

Read more: Skimmer aircraft conducts ‘forced landing’ while fighting wildfire near Cranbrook

Read more: BC Wildfire is building a control line at Highway 3A for Keremeos Creek Wildfire



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