Prince George, B.C. – Lightning sparked over 60 new wildfires Friday in B.C.

Chief Fire Information Officer Kevin Skrepnek of the BC Wildfire Service confirmed the news in a teleconference this afternoon.

An aerial view of the Puntzi Lake fire – photo courtesy BC Wildfire Management Branch

“We saw 67 new fires which is the highest number we’ve seen this year,” he said. “Over 60 of those were lightning caused but the vast majority were small, under one hectare in size.”

Skrepnek says the majority of those lightning strikes were isolated to the eastern part of the province including the Prince George, Hixon, Quesnel areas and the eastern parts of the Cariboo Fire Centre.

Speaking of the Cariboo the Puntzi Lake fire west of Williams Lake is exhibiting aggressive fire behaviour and has grown from 1,200 hectares to over 7,000 hectares in size.

This has forced the Cariboo Regional District to expand the Evacuation Order for the Puntzi Lake area to include over 90 properties while another 183 properties are now under an Evacuation Alert.

In total, Skrepnek said there are now 238 active wildfires across B.C. and 21 wildfires of note.

He also said there’s been a shift in the weather pattern from hot and dry conditions to cooler, wetter temperatures which have been responsible for the increased lightning activity.

Skrepnek noted 100 personnel have arrived from across Canada, predominately Ontario to help battle the blazes.

That number will grow early next week when 50 fire specialists arrive Monday from Australia.