Four new fires were sparked by lightning on Vancouver Island in a 24-hour period, according to the BC Wildfire Service.
The fires – one at Steamboat Mountain east of Tofino, two near Great Central Lake and another in the Conuma Valley – were only about 0.01 hectares in size. The Steamboat Mountain and Great Central Lake fires were discovered Wednesday and the Conuma Valley blaze was spotted Thursday.
"We got a bunch of lightning hits," said Dorthe Jakobsen of Coastal Fire Centre. "We're in the process of checking them all out."
Initial attack grews are on the ground for some of the fires and Jakobsen said the centre was still receiving reports of new fires Thursday.
Crews are also dealing with a 0.5-hectare blaze burning at Harris Creek, just northeast of Port Renfrew, that was sparked Wednesday. The suspected cause is human activity.
Jaksobsen said while rain can help cool or even douse some wildfires, it also makes terrain slippery for responding firefighters.
More than 2,700 people were briefly without power in the Cowichan Valley area Thursday morning as rain fell on the region.
Power went out for large swaths Cobble Hill and Shawnigan Lake at around 7:45 a.m. Power was restored to most BC Hydro customers as of 10 a.m.
In Victoria, police hailed the "much needed rain" but are also warning drivers to take caution while traveling because of pooling water and slippery sections on roads.
The rain comes after severe thunderstorm watches were issued for west and inland Vancouver Island.
The watches have since been rescinded.
