Planned burns continue for Eagle Bluff wildfire near Osoyoos – Okanagan | Globalnews.ca

The Eagle Bluff wildfire is still deemed to be out of control, though it’s hoped planned burns will help rein it in.

On Friday, BC Wildfire updated how the fight against the fire near Osoyoos, B.C., is going.

The fire crossed from Washington state into British Columbia last Saturday, sparking evacuation alerts and orders that affected hundreds of properties.

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Smoke hovers over parts of B.C.’s Interior

Currently, there are 560 properties on evacuation alert and 134 properties on evacuation order.

“We’re still in the process of finishing up some planned ignitions,” said BC Wildfire information officer Shaelee Stearns.

“A few days ago, we finished a planned ignition along the western flank, and then, yesterday, we conducted planned ignitions on the northeast and north flanks of the fire.”

1:36
BCWS pleads with public to stop flying drones in fire zones

Stearns said Friday’s objective was to tie those planned burns together, as well as patrolling and mopping up areas in the north and northeast flanks.

The fire is currently sized at 3,044 hectares. However, once the planned burns are included, it’ll likely be around 6,500 hectares.

Overall, more than 110 ground crews are on scene, along with 19 pieces of heavy equipment plus eight helicopters and 77 structure protection personnel.

In related news, the RDOS rescinded an evacuation order for Osoyoos Industrial Park and placed the area under an evacuation alert.

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Planned ignitions underway on Osoyoos wildfire

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