RESOLVING THE LEDGER
This is one outlet's own report from The Times of Israel — the article as it was filed. Other outlets are covering the same event; open the full story to compare every source side by side.
See the full story · 1 sources
PENTICTON, British Columbia -- British Columbia declares a state of emergency after thousands of people in the western Canadian province are ordered to flee a fast-moving wildfire that nearly doubled in size overnight.\r
The Bald Range wildfire is burning out of control and has grown rapidly to about 9,500 hectares (23,500 acres), prompting evacuation orders in Summerland, Peachland and other districts west of Okanagan Lake in the province's southern interior. The region produces most of BC's wine and is Canada's second-largest wine-producing area.\r
Premier David Eby tells a news conference that one fire official had likened the fire to "a bomb going off."\r
"He described flames on 100-foot tree, flames going 200 feet above that, and the fire creating its own weather system, which creates lightning, which then feeds on itself," Eby says.\r
"Homes have been lost, and properties have been destroyed. Some people became trapped as conditions changed very quickly, and needed to be rescued," the premier says, adding it remained a very dynamic and threatening situation.\r
Summerland has a population of about 12,000 people, according to the 2021 census, and Peachland is home to about 6,500 residents.\r
A state of emergency grants the provincial government immediate access to special powers, including travel restrictions and supply protections to prevent price gouging, and specific tools to coordinate rescue work.\r
Officials say the Bald Range wildfire triggered the largest evacuation event so far this summer, and more than 20,000 people across BC have been forced to evacuate their homes.\r
"A lot of farms have been affected. We don't know how many structures have been lost. They're still busy fighting the fire," Summerland Mayor Doug Holmes says in a phone interview from Penticton. "We have to brace ourselves for the worst."\r
https://x.com/DisasterUpdate2/status/2086187299218292807
AIPROPX is an independent multi-source news index — we track, compare, and connect coverage from across the web into one place you won't find anywhere else.