Firefighters are beginning to get the upper hand on a wildfire burning near Cowichan Lake.

The blaze at Skutz Falls is now 50 per cent contained, officials said Thursday.

Nearly 70 firefighters are battling the fire from the ground while four helicopters attack it from overhead.

The fire has reached 16 hectares in size, and crews fighting it say the dry weather is making the fight even tougher.

“We’re looking at Interior-type conditions on the coast here, so it’s interesting,” said B.C. Wildfire Service spokesman Rob Templeman. “There’s no water anywhere on any of the hillsides out here. The only place we’re able to find water is down at the Cowichan River right now.”

Crews are trucking and bucketing water to the site of the blaze.

The fire is believed to be human-caused, Templeman said.

It broke out at an active logging site but investigators say it’s too early to tell whether it was sparked by equipment.

The iconic Martin Mars water bomber was called into action to douse the wildfire earlier this week. It's just the second time the plane has been deployed since being called back into service by the B.C. government earlier this month.