Officials confirmed Tuesday that a fast-moving wildfire in western Canada destroyed or damaged approximately 150 structures and forced more than 20,000 residents to evacuate last week. This marks the first detailed accounting of the wildfire's impact.
As of Tuesday, about 2,200 individuals remained under evacuation orders, with another 25,000 on alert across British Columbia, according to Emergency Management Minister Kelly Greene. Conditions have improved, allowing most residents of the heavily affected community of Summerland to begin returning to their homes.
The Bald Range wildfire ignited on August 7 and rapidly advanced toward Summerland and surrounding areas. The blaze moved so quickly that some firefighting crews were diverted to assist with resident evacuations. British Columbia declared a provincial state of emergency the following day. An 80-year-old woman was reported to have died in connection with the wildfire.
Premier David Eby noted that the speed at which the fire spread could signal a "new normal" for British Columbia and called for a review of the province's preparedness for rapidly moving wildfires. Prolonged drought conditions and extreme dryness contributed to the fire's intensity.
Approximately 40 of the damaged structures are located within Summerland, a community of about 12,000 people in British Columbia’s Okanagan region. The remaining affected structures are in neighboring communities, including Faulder, where some homes were reduced to rubble.
Graham Statt, chief administrative officer for the District of Summerland, cautioned that the number of destroyed or damaged structures might increase as assessment teams survey additional properties. Authorities are communicating directly with residents whose homes were impacted before releasing detailed public information. Some affected individuals will be offered counseling services.
Summerland was evacuated along with thousands of residents in and around the nearby community of Peachland. This incident follows the destruction of about 230 homes further north around Okanagan Lake by the Bradley Creek wildfire, which occurred on August 1.
Canada has experienced increasingly severe wildfire seasons in recent years, leading to large-scale evacuations and significant smoke plumes that have frequently drifted across parts of Canada and into the United States.