Nearly two months later, British Columbia’s provincial state of emergency is coming to an end. It’s set to expire at 11:59 pm tonight, Sept. 14th.
Together with cooler weather and rain, the Province says firefighters’ efforts to contain and extinguish wildfires are credited for the shift back to standard emergency response.
The state of emergency, first declared on July 20th, was in place to ensure a coordinated response to wildfire activity and public safety province-wide.
“At the height of the summer, 3,631 personnel were helping fight the fires, including support from Mexico, Australia, and across Canada,” reads a release from the provincial government.
However, it’s noted that the wildfire season is not actually over. The Province finds it vital that the public still remains prepared while following the direction of local authorities.
As of this morning, 207 wildfires are burning in B.C. And as of yesterday, three evacuation orders were in place affecting over 220 properties, with 12 evacuation alerts affecting over 250 properties.
Overall this year, B.C. officials say over 1,500 fires burned close to 870,000 hectares. “Around 32,000 people were displaced, and 19,807 people registered with Emergency Support Services,” they add.
