The Quilpituk Creek wildfire burns on the west side of Okanagan Lake as lights from a helicopter conducting night operations are seen near Fintry, B.C., on Monday, Aug. 3.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
Hillsides and forest scarred black can be seen north of Summerland, B.C., along with the wreckage of an inn that provided an idyllic wedding location beside Okanagan Lake before the deadly Bald Range wildfire ripped through the area over the weekend and forced thousands to flee.
But Thursday’s limited reopening of Highway 97 that runs through the wildfire evacuation zone in the B.C. Interior showed that parts of Summerland itself that are visible from the route appeared unscathed.
The reopening gave some their first glimpse of the community since it was evacuated, although most of the town isn’t visible from the highway, and no stopping was allowed for anyone without a special permit.
The worst damage could be seen at the Okanagan Lake-side La Punta Norte inn, about seven kilometres from Summerland, where the wildfire crossed the highway and went down to the waterline.
Smoke was rising from the hillsides on Thursday as fire crews sprayed apparent hot spots, although no flames were visible.
A sign warning motorists of the road closures along Highway 97 in Kelowna, B.C. on Tuesday. It is now open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with no stopping or exiting except for those with temporary access passes.Steve Dunsmoor/The Canadian Press
The fire that roared east towards Summerland on Friday is still listed as burning out of control, although most of the recent fire activity has been on its western flanks, away from the community of 12,000 residents.
Police said this week that the fire claimed the life of an 80-year-old woman in Meadow Valley, northwest of Summerland, while the nearby community of Faulder was largely destroyed. The fire engulfed both areas as it raced east towards Okanagan Lake and Summerland.
The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen said Thursday that Highway 97, which had been shut since the evacuation, would be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with no stopping or exiting except for those with temporary access passes.
Highway 97 through Summerland, B.C., has reopened for the first time since the community's evacuation. Parts of the community visible on a drive-through appear unscathed, though a guesthouse north of Summerland is heavily damaged and hillsides and forest are scorched black.
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The district said the speed limit was cut to 70 kilometres an hour and there was no access to any of the side roads to enter evacuated areas without a pass.
It said that if drivers didn’t obey all the restrictions, the highway may need to be shut again.
The province’s DriveBC road information site said Thursday that the highway remained an active wildfire area, with conditions subject to change “with little or no warning.”
The BC Wildfire service said the fire measured more than 191 square kilometres, having grown about seven square kilometres overnight, and there was a potential for increased fire behaviour on Thursday.
“Key factors that could contribute to increased fire behaviour today include winds above 15 km/h, periods of clearer skies and atmospheric instability associated with potential thunderstorm activity,” it said in its update.
Perimeter mapping by the service showed the fire had not advanced beyond the western outskirts of Summerland.
The service said crews were working on the fire’s southern flank, constructing 40 kilometres of fire guard since Saturday.
Central Okanagan Emergency Management meanwhile said the Quilpituk Creek fire between Vernon and Kelowna that triggered evacuations earlier this month had been held and was expected to remain within its current boundary.
The emergency operations centre said it was assessing tree danger and hydro lines to determine when residents could return home. Damage assessments were under way, the district said.
Premier David Eby says a wildfire in B.C.’s South Okanagan region that forced about 20,000 residents to evacuate on Friday moved at an unprecedented speed. He says during a briefing in Penticton that the wildfire’s rapid movement is a new normal.
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Among the thousands of residents who were evacuated from Summerland and surrounding areas, many ended up in Penticton, B.C., where they have been receiving an outpouring of support from the community.
Ian Lindsay, CEO of the South Okanagan Similkameen Medical Foundation, said local non-profits and volunteers started working together quickly as evacuees started arriving in Penticton in need.
“The biggest issue that happened at first was when the influx happened, people needed meals,” Lindsay said.
His foundation set up an indoor play space for children of evacuated families at the Penticton Lakeside Resort called “The Great Kid Escape.”
He said other groups such as JCI Penticton, OneSky Community Resources, the Salvation Army and the local Rotary Club have also helped co-ordinate donations and other supports for evacuees.
He said even after almost a week of being displaced, it’s been “rewarding... to see the gratitude from those who have been affected.
Evacuees have also been offered free meals and other donated goods at the Penticton Sikh Temple, where the temple’s president said hundreds had received free food and other items.
Ravinder Bains said donations had been flowing in from all over the Okanagan Valley, and tables at the temple were stacked with the fruit the region is famous for, vegetables, clothing and diapers.
Jarnail Gill, an organizer at the temple, said they started communicating with aid agencies on the first day of the emergency and began feeding people within a few hours.
Premier David Eby and local MLA Amelia Boultbee visited the temple on Wednesday evening, and Boultbee said the evacuations have been “incredibly upsetting” but the community stepping up was a source of pride and optimism.
Laurie Andres, an evacuee from Summerland, was at the temple with a group of friends because they were hungry and said there had been an unbelievable amount of support and resources for people since being displaced.
Andres said her son is a volunteer firefighter and she’s been told her home wasn’t damaged by the blaze that has emptied her hometown.
“We’ve always been really lucky,” she said. “We’ve avoided the fires, but not this time.”