The wildfire forcing thousands to evacuate from a northeast British Columbia town has doubled again in size as the blaze grows merely a few kilometres west of city limits. The Aurora Borealis shines overhead of a B.C. Conservation Officer Service vehicle near the junction of highways 97 and 77, as a wildfire burns in the background near Fort Nelson, B.C., in a Saturday, May 11, 2024, handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, *MANDATORY CREDIT*
FORT NELSON, B.C. – The wildfire burning near Fort Nelson continues to grow rapidly.
As of Tuesday morning, the B.C. Wildfire Service reported the fire had grown to over 84 square kilometres.
That marks a significant expansion of the fire, which as of Monday morning, was just under 53 square kilometres in size.
This comes as efforts to evacuate Fort Nelson continue to be made due to the Parker Lake wildfire, which is still two kilometres outside the town.
Mayor of the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality Rob Fraser says efforts were made to call “holdouts” in the last few days, with some of those efforts being successful.
About 4,700 people live in Fort Nelson, the majority of whom have left due to an evacuation order.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2024
