100 Mile House, B.C. – The Gustafsen wildfire just west of 100 Mile House has grown to 1,500 hectares in size.

The fire was sparked yesterday and is located near the Gustafsen North Forest Service Road. It was estimated at 500 hectares last night but has since tripled in size though the BC Wildfire Service says smoke being generated by the blaze is making it difficult to ascertain the exact size.

“This fire is expected to grow substantially in the next hours and the amount of growth is dependent on weather and wind conditions,” it says. “The BC Wildfire Service is urging the public to exercise caution on the roads and to stay away from the fire area in the interest of both public and worker safety.”

One hundred and twenty firefighters, six helicopters, 15 pieces of heavy equipment and a 25-person incident management team have been deployed.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The fire has prompted a series of evacuation orders totalling 2,050 properties (the number of evacuees has not been released) on the west side of Highway between the northern boundary of 100 Mile House and the northern tip of Lac La Hache.

The Cariboo Regional District has also issued an evacuation alert for about 220 properties on the east side of Highway 97 in the Lac La Hache area.

An emergency social services reception centre has been set up at the Curling Rink on Airport Road in 100 Mile House and the Ramada Inn Convention Centre in Williams lake.

The CRD’s EOC public information line is 250-398-5117. Evacuees are urged to register at one of the emergency social services reception centres, even if they don’t require service so that they can be contacted for public meetings and updates.