Weather permitting, the BC Wildfire Service will be conducting planned ignitions on the Meachen Creek wildfire located within the Meachen Creek drainage, approximately 10 kilometres southwest of St. Mary Lake in the Southeast Fire Centre.

This planned ignition will remove unburned fuels between the fire and the constructed machine guard on the eastern flank to prevent fire spread. The timing of this controlled burn will be dependent on appropriate weather conditions; therefore, it could occur any time over the next few days, and as early as today: Sunday, Aug. 19, 2018.

Under the current circumstances with heavy smoke, this may not be visible to surrounding communities. If the skies clear, people may notice a significant smoke column that can last for several hours. Residents should not be alarmed by the increased smoke.

The Meachen Creek wildfire is currently estimated to be 6,996 hectares in size. Crews are working with heavy equipment to build and reinforce machine guard. Aircraft resources will be used as visibility permits. This fire experienced little activity and has remained in the Meachen Creek drainage. The size of this fire has changed due to more accurate mapping. An incident management team is transitioning onto this fire today to work toward taking control of the fire. For detailed information on the Meachen Creek wildfire, visit the Wildfires of Note page on the bcwildfire.ca website or use the following link: http://ow.ly/Swnf30lsHQm

The evacuation order put into place by the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) remains in effect for the St. Mary Lake area, from the west boundary of the City of Kimberley to the Redding Creek/St. Mary River convergence, including St. Mary Lake Road and Lakefront Road. The evacuation alert remains in effect for the City of Kimberley and properties in the RDEK directly south and southeast of the City of Kimberley municipal boundary.

For more information on the order and alert, please call the Regional District of East Kootenay at 250 426-2188 or visit its website at: www.rdek.bc.ca

To report a wildfire or open burning violation, call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cellphone. For the latest information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions, road closures and air quality advisories, visit: http://www.bcwildfire.ca

You can also follow the latest wildfire news on:

• Twitter: http://twitter.com/BCGovFireInfo 
• Facebook: http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo

Learn More:

For more information about wildfires in your area, please visit the interactive wildfire map on the BC Wildfire Service website: www.bcwildfire.ca

Information about fire danger ratings is available online: http://gov.bc.ca/wildfiredanger

Information about how to be prepared if an evacuation alert or evacuation order is issued for your area is available on the PreparedBC website: http://ow.ly/IMN130lf9PI