🚨 BC Wildfire Crisis Deepens | Big Bar Complex Nears 160,000 Hectares & Thousands Evacuated

130 active wildfires burning right now across British Columbia.57 of them are completely out of control.And here's the part that should get your attention.The weather forecast for the next three days is not going to help firefighters one bit.I'm talking returning heat, dry conditions, and the very real risk of more dry lightning sparking brand new fires across the interior.This is the most serious wildfire situation BC has seen in years, and we have a lot to get through today.

As of this morning, the 3rd of August, 2026, BC Wildfire Service is tracking 130 active wildfires provincewide.44 % of those, that's 57 fires, are classified as out of control.22 are being held, meaning crews have them contained but haven't fully controlled them yet.

and 51 are under control, which is the good news in all of this.Now, within those 130 fires, there are six designated as wildfires of note.

That's the official BC Wildfire Service designation for fires that are either highly visible, extremely fast moving, or directly threatening public safety.Those six fires are the ones we need to talk about in detail.Over this past weekend, a cold front swept through southern BC.

What it did bring was strong gusty winds and dry lightning, and that combination is about as bad as it gets when you're talking about wildfire weather.Dry lightning, and I'll explain this simply, is lightning that falls from a thunderstorm where the rain evaporates before it ever reaches the ground.So you get the spark, but none of the moisture.Over this past weekend alone, more than 2 ,200 lightning strikes were recorded across the province.22 new fires were ignited by lightning in a single day.10 of those are still out of control.

right now.And BC Wildfire Service is warning that some of those lightning fires may still be smoldering underground, not showing any smoke yet, just waiting for the dry conditions coming this week to flare up.That is a really important point and we'll come back to it.Now let's go region by region.and look at what's burning where.We're going to start in the caribou, the epicenter of this crisis.

The Pear Lake Wildfire Fire Code C40983 is one of the largest active wildfires in British Columbia right now.We're talking 115 ,438 hectares.To put that in perspective, that's roughly 1 .4 times the land area of the city of Calgary proper.

It's located east of Pear Lake, near Clinton, and it's been burning since July 17.But here's where it gets even bigger.Pear Lake is part of a larger management complex alongside the French Bar Creek fire at 37 ,106 hectares, and the Rim Lake fire at 4 ,577 hectares, all three managed together as what's called the Big Bar Complex.

That combined footprint is pushing toward 160 ,000 hectares, all three fires out of control.A BC emergency alert has been issued for the Thompson -Nicola Regional District and the Village of Clinton.On the firefighting side, The response is massive.BC Wildfire Service has deployed 279 firefighting personnel, 214 structure protection personnel, 24 helicopters and 86 pieces of heavy equipment to the Big Bar complex alone.

That is an enormous resource commitment and it gives you a sense of just how serious this fire is.Now let's move south to the Okanogan.The Bradley Creek Wildfire Code K41351 Kamloops Fire Center is the fire that has been making headlines this weekend.And for good reason, this fire went from ignition to crisis.in less than 48 hours.It was discovered late Friday night, July 31st, on Okanagan Indian Band Land near the north end of Okanagan Lake, west of Vernon, British Columbia.

By Saturday afternoon, it was already 1 ,047 hectares.By Sunday, it had exploded to 2 ,603 hectares.The reason for that explosive growth?Wind.We're talking wind.of up to 115 kilometers per hour at elevation and 80 kilometers per hour at ground level.

The wind shifted direction not once but twice on Saturday.First, it came out of the west, driving the fire toward Westside Road and Okanagan Lake, forcing Westside Road to close.

Then it shifted to come out of the south, and that pushed the fire northeast right across Highway 97.If you are planning to travel the 497 between Kamloops and Vernon, I need you to hear this clearly.

Highway 97 is closed between the Highway 97A Junction and Salmon River Road.There is no estimated time of reopening.Do not attempt to travel that corridor.Check Drive BC before you go anywhere.Homes along the west shore of Okanagan Lake have been destroyed.Residents described flames lighting up the night sky orange and running to get whatever they could into their cars.

Evacuation orders are in effect for the Okanagan Indian Band IR -1, the township of Spalemcheen, parts of the North Okanagan Regional District, and portions of Splatsin First Nation.The city of Vernon has opened an emergency reception center at Cal Tire Place on 43rd Avenue.As of Sunday, approximately 250 evacuees had registered there for food and water.As of Sunday, 35 B .C.Wildfire Service personnel and seven helicopters were actively fighting the Bradley Creek fire.

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Wildfire Service warns that even though winds calmed Sunday, drought -impacted fuels remain highly susceptible to re -ignition.Residents in evacuation alert zones must stay ready to leave at a moment's notice.Also in the central Okanogan, we have the Quilpatook Creek Fire Code K51402 burning along West Side Road.This fire ignited August 1st and is suspected to be human -caused.Evacuation orders have been issued for the Finchery, Valley of the Sun and Ewing's Landing neighborhoods.The fire knocked down power lines, cutting electricity

approximately 1 ,475 BC Hydro customers.So we now have the entirety of West Side Road closed due to Bradley Creek, Quilpatook Creek, and Blue Grouse Creek fires all burning simultaneously along that corridor.

Moving to the coast and Fraser Canyon, the Brunswick Creek Wildfire V10742 Coastal Fire Center has been burning since July 2nd in the Boston Bar area.This is one of the longest running active fires in the province right now.An evacuation order is in effect for Electoral Area A in the Fraser Valley Regional District, as well as Boston Bar First Nation.

The Ainslie Creek Fire, also Coastal Fire Center, has been burning since July 4th and remains out of control.And then we have the Southeast Fire Center, which is the most alarming cluster in the province right now in terms of sheer number of fires.We are talking over 30 active out -of -control fires concentrated in the Kootenai region alone.Tower Creek, Tower Creek 2.Matthew Creek, Jumbo Creek, Calamity Creek, Inonoklin Creek, Poplar Creek.That is just a partial list of what is burning.

Many of these fires ignited between July 17th and late July from a combination of lightning and dry conditions.The Regional District of East Kootenai and Central Kootenai both have active evacuation information in effect.Now let's talk about the forecast, because this is critical.Starting today, Monday, August 3rd, the rain from the weekend cold front is clearing quickly.

Whatever moisture fell this weekend was minimal, and it will do very little to reduce fire danger in the interior.As the front clears, winds are shifting to a southerly flow, and wildfire smoke is going to be transported into southern portions of B .C.through Monday.

If you're in the Okanogan, the Thompson, or the Kootenays, expect degraded air quality through the day.Keep an eye on AQHI, the Air Quality Health Index, and if you have respiratory issues,stay indoors Tuesday and Wednesday, August 4th and 5th.This is where the forecast becomes genuinely concerning.

A new stretch of hot, dry, and windy weather is building across BC's interior.Fire danger ratings are expected to maintain or elevate to high and extreme across most of the southern interior.Now here is the piece I mentioned earlier that I want to come back to.Those lightning fires from the weekend that are still smoldering underground.As temperatures climb and humidity drops through Tuesday and Wednesday, August 4th and 5th, those holdover fires can wake up fast.There will be no visible smoke, no obvious warning, and suddenly a fire that looked quiet can grow rapidly.

BC Wildfire Service has already flagged this as a significant concern heading into the new work week.

Looking at the extended outlook, and I'm not going to sugarcoat this, there is no meaningful rainfall in the forecast for the interior.The drought gripping the Okanagan, the Chilcotin, and the South Thompson is a multi -year drought.We're not talking about something a few millimeters of rain will fix.BC Wildfire Service's own seasonal outlook states that the amount of rain required to meaningfully reduce drought conditions in these regions is unlikely to arrive this summer.Drought code values, that's the measure of deep organic soil dryness, are comparable to the worst fire years on record.2017, 2018, and 2021.

Fuels on the landscape, the trees, the grass, the deadfall were described by B .C.Wildfire Service's director of operations as dry as they can get and nothing has changed since.August is historically the peak month for fire activity in BC, and we are heading into that peak with 130 active fires, a province -wide drought, no rain in sight, and a forecast that calls for continued heat and dry conditions.Before I wrap up, I want to run through the key travel and safety points one more time, because these are critical.

Highway 97 is closed between the Highway 95Junction and Salmon River Road in the Vernon area.No estimated reopening.Highway 97 is also closed between Loon Lake Road and 76 Mile Frontage Road near Clinton.Again, no estimated reopening.Westside Road is closed along its entire length.

Always check DriveBC before you travel anywhere in the interior or anywhere near the Fraser Canyon right now.If you are under an evacuation alert, please prepare your go bag now.

Do not wait for an evacuation order to start getting ready.Register for your community's emergency notification system.And if you receive a B .C.emergency alert on your phone or radio, treat it as the real thing because it is for evacuee support.Call the B .

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Evacuee Helpline at 1 -800 -387 -4258.All right, let me bring this together for you.British Columbia is facing a wildfire crisis of historic proportions, 130 fires, 57 out of control.Six wildfires of note threatening communities across the province.

Two major sections of Highway 97 closed with no end in sight.More than 5 ,000 people evacuated, with 8 ,500 properties under orders or alerts province -wide.And a weather forecast that offers no relief for at least the next week.This is a developing and rapidly evolving situation.I will be updating you every day as long as this emergency continues.daily update.

Turn notifications on because in a situation like this, getting the latest information quickly matters.Share this video with anyone you know in BC, especially if they're in the Okanagan, the Caribou, the Thompson, or the Kootenays.They need this information.I'll see you in the next one.Stay safe out there, British Columbia.