Bear Creek wildfire leads to long weekend closures of roads to a pair of backcountry recreation sites

HARRISON LAKE — As the B.C. Day long weekend approaches and campers pack up, the provincial government has announced the closure of two forest service roads due to concerns over the Bear Creek wildfire blocking access to a pair of recreation sites along Harrison Lake.

The government says the closures are necessary because travel along the Harrison East and the Kookipi Forest Service Roads (FSR) will risk the safety of travellers as well as crews battling the wildfire.

The Harrison East FSR closed at the 11.2 km mark, while the Kookipi FSR is closed at 0 km. The closures will prevent access to the Cogburn and Bear Creek Recreation sites.

The closures are effective immediately.

The wildfire was spotted Tuesday (Jul. 20) and more than doubled in size over the next 24 hours.

The BC Wildfire Service is calling for boaters to avoid the area north of the Cascade Peninsula and south of the Silver River on Harrison Lake. That’s where aircraft will be accessing water to deal with the wildfire.