New wildfire south of Boston Bar grows to over 4,000 hectares in 24 hours

FRASER CANYON – Yesterday’s wildfire south of Boston Bar that grew from 300 hectares to 1,000 hectares has grown in leaps and bounds in less than 24 hours.

The BC Wildfire Service now says the Anderson Creek wildfire located near Hells Gate is 4,332.9 hectares.

The wildfire is considered out of control and is suspected of being caused by humans.

It was discovered on Tuesday, July 21 by aircraft who were responding to the Brunswick Creek wildfire. BCWS says it started beside Highway 1 and spread rapidly upslope.

“Helicopters immediately provided bucketing support, but due to terrain and rate of spread they were unable to keep the fire from running up the hill. Southerly winds pushed it north across the slope, driving significant growth. Aggressive fire behaviour (fast-moving crown fire) continued into the night,” BCWS said.

Based on today’s weather forecast, BCWS personnel say they are expecting another challenging day. Smoke will moderate temperatures somewhat, but hot and very dry conditions could lead to aggressive fire behaviour similar to yesterday.

Yesterday afternoon, structural firefighters activated sprinkler systems on structures in Boston Bar, Boston Bar First Nation and Green Ranch Road areas, conducted structure defence overnight, and patrolled the communities for hotspots.

Fire behaviour and steep terrain made direct attack unsafe for ground crews yesterday. BC Wildfire Service crews supported structure protection personnel yesterday evening, and today they are working to extinguish fire along the Highway 1 corridor.

Today, crews will continue to engage where it is safe to do so.

“Smoke is expected to limit aviation operations today. Aircraft will be utilized when visibility allows for safe flying,” BCWS said. “Structure protection crews are using water tenders to draw water from the river and fill bladders staged within the community, which supply the hose and sprinkler systems. This approach was built into the plan from the outset to avoid straining the local water system, and efforts to protect that supply continue.”

The nearby Brunswick Creek wildfire is 6,139.8 hectares while the Ainslie Creek wildfire east of Hwy. 1 is 17,298.5 hectares.