Two homes have been evacuated as crews battle a wildfire that broke out Wednesday in Metro Vancouver’s təmtəmíxʷtən Belcarra Regional Park — and dozens of other properties have been placed on evacuation alert.
Officials said tactical evacuations were carried out at the two homes, both located along Fern Drive in the Village of Anmore.
An evacuation alert was also issued Wednesday evening for 35 more addresses in the community, with affected residents urged to be ready to leave on short notice.
“Pack essential items for a quick departure, such as government-issued ID, medications, eyeglasses, valuable papers,” reads a notice on the Anmore website. “Prepare to move people with disabilities, children and neighbours if assistance is needed.”
A full list of properties under evacuation alert, as well as more advice for those affected, is available online.
In a statement, Acting Mayor Doug Richardson thanked the Sasamat Volunteer Fire Department, Port Moody Fire Department, Coquitlam Search and Rescue, and Metro Vancouver emergency response staff for their joint efforts in the face of the fire.
“The Village has activated its Emergency Operations Centre to help support the emergency response,” Richardson said. “We’re a small team, but we will be doing our best to keep our residents updated.”
Speaking to reporters Wednesday afternoon, Brant Arnold-Smith, incident commander with Metro Vancouver, said the flames were burning approximately 300 metres from the nearest property.
Three helicopters spent the afternoon aggressively bucketing the blaze, and were “making good headway,” Arnold-Smith said.
By Thursday morning, the fire was “nearly contained,” according to the regional district.
Ground crews were initially unable to help due to downed BC Hydro lines in the area, but Arnold-Smith said the utility provider was expected to de-energize the wires by the early evening.
“We are unsure if it was the cause of the fire, or if the fire caused the hydro wires to come down after the fact,” Arnold-Smith said.
In the meantime, Arnold-Smith said it was “very fortunate” there were no strong winds in the park.
“It’s advantageous for our crews and also a lot safer for our crews,” he said.
təmtəmíxʷtən Belcarra Regional Park borders both the villages of Anmore and Belcarra, and is located across Burrard Inlet from Port Moody.
Witness video recorded from Reed Point Marina shows plumes of smoke billowing over the area.
The B.C. Wildfire Service has classified the fire as burning out of control — and the suspected cause as human activity, either accidental or intentional.
The size was most recently estimated at approximately 1.5 hectares.
The fire danger rating in the park is currently high, and a campfire ban is in effect across much of the South Coast.
With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Kevin Charach
