Prince George, B.C. –  BC. Wildfire Services  says   the  Rock Creek fire  in southeastern BC could  see  increased activity  because  the wind  is expected to pick up in the Rock Creek – Oliver region.

The fire,  which has destroyed 30  structures and forced the evacuation of 100 homes,  is now estimated  to be  greater than 4,000 hectares and is 25% contained.

Chief Information Officer Kevin Skrepnek says there are 100 firefighters on the ground, 8 choppers in the air, and 14 pieces of heavy equipment working that blaze. “We are forecasting  wind over some of these fires and that could potentially fuel them a little bit fan those flames and cause some growth out there and add a bit to  increased fire activity” says Skrepnek.   He says there are plans in place if there is a change in activity on the fire.

Skrepnek says it will be some time before the costs associated with battling the Rock Creek fire are known.   The cause of this disastrous fire remains under investigation.  While there had been rumours of a video  showing how the  fire started, that video has not surfaced.  Skrepnek says  a review of images from a nearby highway camera also failed to show any details on how the blaze  got underway.

Earlier today,  it was announced  donations to the Red Cross will be accepted at all BC Liquor stores to assist those  impacted by the Rock Creek-Oliver blaze.

So far this year,  $215 million dollars have been spent battling wildfires throughout BC.  There are 233 wildfires  burning in the province, 171 of them  caused by lightning and 28  of them  new fires that were reported yesterday.  Fire fighting costs for yesterday alone are estimated at $4.6 million dollars.