**NowMedia's previous coverage of the Munro Lake wildfire can be found at this link.**
(UPDATE: Sept. 29 at 2:35 pm) — The evacuation order for industrial properties in Peachland has been downgraded to an evacuation alert.
According to the Central Okanagan Operations Centre (EOC), the following properties are now on evacuation alert:
The ZipZone Adventure Park at 5875 Brenda Mines Rd. remains on evacuation order.
“The evacuation order and alerts currently in place are expected to remain today and tomorrow, September 30,” stated an EOC notice.
“Unless conditions change, the Emergency Operations Centre will not be providing further updates until Wednesday, October 1.”
A map of the addresses on the evacuation order and alert can be found online at this link.
(UPDATE: Sept. 29 at 11:35 am) — Overcast weather limited the severity of the Munro Lake wildfire on Sunday and the blaze saw no significant growth overnight.
According to the BC Wildfire Service’s (BCWS) latest update, the fire displayed rank two behaviour on Sunday, with pockets burning at rank three, meaning a low vigour surface fire with a slow rate of speed.
In areas where wind and the mountain slope aligned, the blaze burned as a moderately vigorous surface fire with candling.
Overnight, there was no significant growth and the blaze calmed down, burning at a slow rate of speed as a surface and ground fire.
The BCWS is expecting stronger winds and overcast conditions throughout the day today. Precipitation is also expected this evening.
On Sunday, crews completed the majority of a planned ignition to secure the southeast flank of the fire.
Today, crews will be working to complete smaller portions of the ignition as long as conditions allow.
“Crews and heavy equipment continue to prioritize work along the east flank of the fire, conducting mop-up up to 100 feet in from the fire's edge,” wrote BCWS.
“Crews are also going direct on spots along the southwest and northwest flanks. Heavy equipment is working along the northwest corner of the fire to construct a guard using preexisting roads.”
Up-to-date information about evacuation orders and alerts due to the fire can be found online at this link.
(UPDATE: Sept. 29 at 5:24 am) — A property has been handed an evacuation order as the Munro Lake wildfire continues to burn out of control.
Central Okanagan Emergency Operations said 5875 Brenda Mines Road, at ZipZone Adventure Park, has been added to the list of evacuations.
All previous alerts and orders remain in place, according to the agency.
An update on the fire's status is expected today, but according to the latest information provided by the BC Wildfire Service, the blaze is now 310 hectares in size.
The suspected cause of the fire is human activity.
A detailed map of the affected addresses can be found online at this link.
(Original story: Sept. 28 at 9:50 am): Overcast skies limited the severity of the Munro Lake wildfire’s behaviour on Saturday.
According to the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS), the fire outside of Peachland burned as a rank two and three blaze throughout the day yesterday, meaning it was a low-vigour surface fire with a slow rate of spread.
Some areas where wind and the mountain slopes aligned saw candling and moderately vigorous fire behaviour.
“Overnight fire behaviour decreased to rank one and two fire behaviour, meaning a surface and ground fire with a slow rate of spread,” stated BCWS.
“With the potential for strong southwest winds again today, Sept. 28, we may see an increase in fire behaviour throughout the day, especially if we start to see sunny conditions, as solar radiation dries out fuels, making them more susceptible to ignition.”
Crews and heavy equipment are prioritizing work along the east flank of the fire and will look to move up to 100 feet in from the fire’s edge while mopping up.
Heavy equipment is working along the northwest corner of the fire to construct a guard using preexisting roads.
“Today, Sept. 28, crews will be looking to conduct a 54-hectare planned ignition to secure the southeast flank of the fire,” added BCWS.
“This will be done by hand ignitions and will only continue if site conditions allow. The primary goal of these operations is to remove fuel between the fire's edge and established control lines (natural or created), which helps control a section of a large wildfire or entire smaller fires.”
The evacuation order and alert issued by the Central Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) remains in place.
A detailed map of the affected addresses can be found online at this link.
