Mt. MacLean Fire Half Contained

By 250 News

KAMLOOPS – The Mount McLean fire near the town of Lillooet is now 50 percent contained. Firefighters have been working diligently and continue to make progress on the fire.
Today’s main objectives include aggressive initial attack of any spot fires, supporting ground crews and heavy equipment with helicopter bucketing and aggressive mop-up along the eastern flank.

Ten pieces of heavy equipment, 81 firefighters, 80 support personnel, and 11 helicopters are on the fire today. Twelve structural protection units from the Office of the Fire Commissioner have been demobed from Lillooet and moved to Seton Portage.

Extreme fire behaviour is possible, as temperatures reaching the low thirties combined with sunny conditions, lower humidity, increased winds and severely dry fuels make for rapid rates of spread. South-westerly winds blowing at 15 km/hr gusting to 40 to 70km/hr are forecasted for today. Safety remains a priority and personnel will be assessing weather conditions on an hourly basis.

Meantime, high winds and dry conditions increased the Brookmere fire to an estimated 2800 hectares.  While residents remain on Evacuation Alert, crews are working on securing the fire to the northern cutblock, as well as securing the perimeter of the fire.

Crews are also monitoring the east and north side of the fire, which have the greatest potential for fire spread.

Resources on site include 138 firefighters from BC, Albert and Ontario, plus support personnel, eight helicopters and 29 pieces of heavy equipment.

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