Kamloops, British Columbia....WILDFIRE UPDATE: Hi everyone. Thanks so much for your kindness and concern. By mid afternoon the wind picked up a lot of steam in Kelowna, fanning the wildfire (spreading rapidly with horrendous smoke). Residents of nearly six hundred homes (1,500 people) were given the evacuation order mid-afternoon. Water bombers were flying directly over our home ever couple of minutes between the lake and fire zone. With the wind getting much stronger, directly eastward at our home and getting news of escalating evacs we began to pack a light back bag each in case we had to get out fast. The evac zone was three blocks from our home on the upper level of the mountain foothills. We just beneath that shelf in a small valley close to the mountains and that area (Shannon Lake) is fairly heavily treed on the upper shelf. Around 4:00pm I decided we shouldnt wait for an evac order. We headed out and actually decided to leave the city, take a drive and settle in a hotel for the night (or more)...in Kamloops, 2.5 hrs away. There quite a bit of smoke in Kamloops too but very safely distant. Kamloops is very arid, desert-like much more so than Kelowna and the treed area are on the outskirts of the city for the most part. I had only a couple of hrs sleep last night but felt that with the vacation season well under way, finding a hotel room, especially with such a large evac, would be next to impossible. Needed the drive anyway to de-stress a bit. Latest news is that there has still not been an evac order on our street (though people were leaving at the same time we did). The wildfire is nowhere near under control and if the winds are as strong as they are in Kamloops it will be serious. Were very anxious about morning news re our new home in Kelowna. So many special belongings tied to lost family etc. Well see what the next couple of days bring and keep all posted here. Keep best thoughts. The situation is now considered extreme in Kelowna and well over one hundred regions within BC alone. We wanted summer and weve got it. Thanks again to everyone. Love n hugs to all.
Posted on: Fri, 18 Jul 2014 04:35:03 +0000
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