Weather change gives wildfire crews momentum in fight against Ross Moore Lake fire

KAMLOOPS — Mother Nature has given B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) crews a chance to make some real headway in their fight against the Ross Moore Lake wildfire south of Kamloops.

Speaking to CFJC Today Tuesday morning (July 25), Fire Information Officer Noelle Kekula said the storm system that blew through the Kamloops area Monday night helped slow down an intense drying trend.

“We’re seeing cooler temperatures, lighter winds and moisture in the air — you can feel there’s a bit more moisture and humidity in the air,” said Kekula. “We are really thankful for this little break in our weather pattern.”

The system brought some rain as well, but the accumulations were not significant.

“There was precipitation received, however it wasn’t near the precipitation that we needed to really have an impact to behaviour and what’s ahead of us,” she said. “We do have that drying trend right around the corner.”

Though the system did come with lightning, Kekula says BCWS has yet to see much impact.

“There were numerous strikes last night, but again, because we’ve got this cooler trend and it’s calm, we’re not seeing many new starts yet,” she said. Members of the public are asked to call 1 (800) 663-5555 or *5555 on a cell phone if they see new starts.

The Ross Moore Lake fire, which ignited last Friday, has grown to 2,600 hectares. The Thompson-Nicola Regional District has evacuated 344 nearby properties.

Kekula says spread has slowed considerably in the past 24 hours.

“We’ve got minimal fire behaviour,” she said. “We are building guards as we speak and really taking advantage of this cooler trend right now in anticipation of building some guards and some containment before the drying trend comes back.”

After Tuesday’s cooler weather moves off, Environment Canada is calling for sunshine and temperatures around 30 degrees in the Kamloops area for the remainder of the week.