Vancouver Island wildfire surges in size, forces rolling highway closures
An out-of-control wildfire on Vancouver Island surged in size Tuesday, covering more than a square kilometre and forcing intermittent closures of the only highway to Port Alberni, Tofino and Ucluelet.
The wildfire near Cameron Lake, approximately 20 kilometres east of Port Alberni, reached Highway 4 on Tuesday morning, prompting the B.C. Ministry of Transportation to temporarily close a seven-kilometre stretch of the highway just south of the lake.
The highway was reopened to single-lane alternating traffic before noon, and the ministry issued a warning to drivers to avoid stopping in the area.
The highway was again closed in both directions before 4 p.m., with rolling closures and partial reopenings expected to last through the evening.
Port Alberni Mayor Sharie Minions says the ongoing closures along Highway 4 – the only major vehicle route in and out of the community – is a grave concern among residents.
"We've all seen situations like this escalate in other parts of the province over the last few years with some of the really significant and severe forest fires," Minions told CTV News.
"We have to be able to truck in goods, we have to keep our families safe, obviously, as we navigate through this."
The B.C. Wildfire Service says air tankers and helicopters are supporting the efforts of ground attack crews, dropping water on the most inaccessible areas of the fire.
Louis Verheyen, owner of the Cameron Lake Resort, says he closed the resort's boat ramp – the only ramp access to Cameron Lake – to keep watercraft off the water while the aerial firefighting vehicles were scooping up lake water on Tuesday.
Provincial officials say the Cameron Bluffs fire, which was first reported early Sunday morning, is believed to be human-caused.
On Monday, the fire measured just 20 hectares before growing to 25 hectares Tuesday morning and 109 hectares by the afternoon.
The wildfire agency says 79 fires were actively burning in the province Tuesday afternoon, with 27 fires considered out of control.
Thirty-seven of the active fires are suspected to have been caused by lightning, 33 are believed to have been caused by people and nine are of unknown origin, according to the agency.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Alice Munro, Nobel literature winner revered as short story master, dead at 92
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
Latest updates on air quality alerts, and when the smoke may reach Ontario and Quebec
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
Are these Canada's best restaurants? Annual top 100 list revealed
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
Attack on prison van in France kills 2 officers, inmate escapes
Armed assailants killed two French prison officers and seriously wounded three others in an attack on a convoy in Normandy on Tuesday and an inmate escaped, officials said.
Maximum payout for LifeLabs class-action drops from $150 estimate to $7.86
Canadian LifeLabs customers who filed an application for a class-action settlement began receiving their payments this week, though at a much lower amount than initially expected.
Steal a car, lose your driver's licence for 10 years under new Ontario proposal
Repeat car thieves may face lengthy licence bans under proposed changes to Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act.
$1.6B parts plant for Honda electric vehicle batteries coming to Niagara Region
A Japanese company has announced it will build an approximately $1.6-billion plant in Ontario's Niagara Region that will make a key electric vehicle battery component as part of Honda's supply chain in the province.
B.C. brings in law on name changes on day that child killer's new identity revealed
The BC NDP have tabled legislation aimed at stopping people who have committed certain heinous acts from changing their names.
Manitoba premier to visit areas impacted by wildfire
Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew will get a close-up look at the devastation from a large wildfire burning in northern Manitoba Tuesday.