Heavy rain has helped end the threat posed by the Slocan Park wildfire, which is now 80 per cent contained.
“Right now most of the fire is basically in mop-up and patrol,” said information officer Jordan Turner. “We received a substantial amount of rain in the last few days, which has really dropped the fire behaviour.”
It was so wet that crews actually stood down for a day due to the slippery terrain, but they are back at it today. Twenty-three firefighters and one helicopter are working on the blaze, down from a peak of over 100 people and eight helicopters.
“It’s not completely contained, but we’re looking to make sure it doesn’t start up again,” Turner said. He said two crews are working on separate parts of the fire, looking for hotspots.
An evacuation alert for 47 homes was lifted Thursday afternoon. The fire burned 90 hectares.
The fire danger rating through most of the Southeast Fire Centre has dropped to low to moderate as a result of all the rain, and no new starts have been reported for a few days. A campfire ban imposed earlier this month was rescinded Friday.