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Aug. 17: “Things are stable for now” on Elephant Hill fire

About 150 firefighters working on the north end of the fire
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Much of the South Cariboo, including Lac la Hache pictured here on Aug. 15, remains smoky in part due to the Elephant Hill fire. Max Winkelman photo.

“Things are stable for now,” says Fire Information Officer for the Elephant Hill fire Noelle Kekula.

“Crews are working really, continuing to work hard. There is a low-pressure system that’s forecasted for the weekend, a cold front coming. So we are preparing for that.”

They’re closely studying the predicted winds, growth patterns, where it could go, rate of spread and more.

“We are working and preparing for this cold front to come in.”

They have about 150 firefighters on the north end who are both directly attacking the fire and working to strengthen the guard, she says.

Kekula says there has not been enough rain to put out the fire.

“We’ve not had rain all summer. We had less than an inch all summer long. That is not a significant amount of rain.”

Kekula says she thinks there is not much behaviour on the fire with little growth in the last 24 hours.

“We are still seeing open flames but we’re not seeing any major ranks of the fire but it is still active and lots of hotspots.”

Kekula would like to remind residents they should not be in evacuation order areas.

“If you want the information on actually what is happening, the Wildfire or Note page or through local media. They’re getting updates through me.”

Related: Bonaparte, Criss Creek evacuation order downgraded