Rain slows down Vancouver Island wildfire, detour route reopens
Rain overnight Friday provided some relief for a wildfire burning out of control near Port Alberni, B.C., as crews continue to battle the blaze that shut down the only paved roadway connecting the east and west coasts of Vancouver Island.
Due to the precipitation, the fire is “not very active today,” Donna MacPherson, information officer with Coastal Fire Centre told CTV News Saturday afternoon. “It's not growing much, but it is growing,” she said.
The Cameron Bluffs wildfire, which is believed to be human-caused, has grown to 208 hectares since it was discovered one week ago.
Currently 76 firefighters, four helicopters and 10 pieces of heavy equipment are working to contain the fire from all four flanks, MacPherson said.
Thankfully, the fire is growing uphill, not toward any inhabited communities or the ancient forest of Cathedral Grove. “It’s just climbing the rock slope slowly,” she said.
The mountainous terrain makes firefighting efforts challenging. “It's an incredibly steep terrain, and it's very unstable ground, so there's lots of rolling rocks and sliding rocks—so it's pretty slow going for crews, right now,” MacPherson said.
Even though there has been some rain, the information officer emphasized that open fire bans are still in place.
DETOUR REOPENED
The detour established Wednesday to connect Port Alberni, Tofino and Ucluelet with the rest of the province as Highway 4 remains closed reopened Friday evening, B.C. transportation officials said.
The detour, a four-hour route along logging roads through remote and rugged terrain, was shut down for most of the day while a vehicle that rolled into Francis Lake was being retrieved.
The transportation of essential goods, such as fuel and food, is being prioritized on the detour. As such, officials announced that starting Sunday, four piloted convoys will escort commercial vehicles daily along the route to and from Port Alberni until further notice.
The departure times are daily at 5 a.m. leaving Lake Cowichan, at 10 a.m. leaving Port Alberni, at 3 p.m. leaving Lake Cowichan, and at 8 p.m. leaving Port Alberni.
Commercial vehicles are permitted to travel outside of those times, but there will be no pilot vehicles outside of the schedule, a statement from the transportation and infrastructure ministry explained.
Other drivers will be placed behind the convoy, the statement continued.
Transportation officials said the next update on a possible Highway 4 reopening will be provided after the weekend.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Ontario woman surprised after 20-year-old fines suddenly tank credit score
An Ontario woman says that she was shocked when provincial fines from 20 years ago suddenly tanked her credit score last week, but the situation may not be as unusual as it seems, according to at least one debt expert.
Anger can harm your blood vessel function, study shows
Stress and anger can have a negative impact on cardiovascular health, studies have shown. New research points to just how the mechanism may work.
A 98-year-old in Ukraine walked miles to safety from Russians, with slippers and a cane
A 98-year-old woman in Ukraine who escaped Russian-occupied territory by walking almost 10 kilometres (six miles) alone, wearing a pair of slippers and supported by a cane has been reunited with her family days after they were separated while fleeing to safety.
Will an 'out of sight, out of mind' cellphone policy make a difference in Ontario schools?
Ontario’s cellphone ban in schools has been met with mixed reaction, with some teachers concerned about constant policing of kids and experts applauding the change as necessary for student learning.
A Utah couple accidentally shipped their cat with an Amazon return. A week -- and 3 'miracles' -- later, they were on a plane to meet a stranger
The Amazon returns employee wasn't at work the day one of her colleagues at a California warehouse found a small, furry stowaway in a box mailed six days earlier from Utah. But Brandy Hunter got the call anyway.
Dueling protesters clash at UCLA hours after police clear pro-Palestinian demonstration at Columbia
Dueling groups of protesters clashed Wednesday at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. Hours earlier, police burst into a building at Columbia University that pro-Palestinian protesters took over and broke up a demonstration that had paralyzed the school while inspiring others.
Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
Avalanche eliminate Winnipeg Jets from playoffs with 6-3 road win
Mikko Rantanen's first two goals of the playoffs propelled the Colorado Avalanche to a 6-3 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday that clinched their opening-round playoff series in five games.