Evacuee describes ‘surreal’ speed of B.C. wildfire that quadrupled in size

DAWSON CREEK — Shelley Calliou of the Kelly Lake Cree Nation said it was “surreal” how fast a wildfire threatening the community in northeast British Columbia moved.

She said she was told by the RCMP at 6 p.m. Thursday that she had a two-hour window to evacuate, with the Kiskatinaw River fire 18 kilometres southwest of the unincorporated community of Kelly Lake.

“Within those two hours, it moved 10 kilometres. It’s fast-moving,” said Calliou on Friday from Dawson Creek, B.C., where she said about 70 people had fled, about 80 kilometres north.

The fire that prompted the evacuation order for Kelly Lake and nearby areas on Thursday quadrupled in size overnight, as firefighters warned of “intensifying conditions” in the parched northeast of the province where most fire activity is concentrated.

The BC Wildfire Service reported that the out-of-control blaze in the Peace River Regional District, near the Alberta boundary, was about 46 square kilometres in size on Friday, up from 11 square kilometres Thursday afternoon.

But the fire’s growth had halted about seven kilometres from Kelly Lake on Friday afternoon, said Jeromy Corrigan, an information officer with the BC Wildfire Service.

“It’s burning, but it stayed still, and as a result, we’re not seeing the fire grow in size, which is good,” he said.

He said fire crews had previously seen strong winds gusting up to 60 kilometres an hour in the region, fuelling the fire’s growth on Thursday as it moved east.

He said there were 65 firefighters battling the blaze, while the wildfire service’s online dashboard said helicopters, airtankers and a “heavy equipment strike team” had been deployed.

Corrigan said it was encouraging that the forecast this weekend for the Peace River region did not include thunderstorms or lightning, suggesting “no potential new starts when it comes from weather, at least.”

The wildfire service dashboard says the Kiskatinaw River fire was discovered on Wednesday and is believed to have been human caused.

The Pembina Steeprock gas plant is close to the fire, worrying Calliou.

“I feel like we are really praying that the community and the structures, the homes are protected,” said Calliou. “It’s not just the community itself, (it’s) the land, the territory that sustains us.”

The fire has cut parts of Highway 52 E, also known as the Heritage Highway.

The Peace River Regional District issued the evacuation order on Thursday afternoon for homes around Kelly Lake and areas north of Campbell Lake, west of Tent Lake, south of Twin Lakes, and east to the Alberta border.

Census data suggests Kelly Lake has a population of about 75 residents and the district said people should evacuate to Dawson Creek. The Kelly Lake Cree Nation says it has 800 citizens although they do not all live in that area.

“The Dawson Creek Emergency Support Services team has stood up an emergency reception centre in response to support evacuees from the Kelly Lake community,” the City of Dawson Creek said on social media, adding that it would provide food, supplies and lodging.

The fire is among about 65 burning in the province, 39 of which are classified as out of control.

Of the active fires in B.C., the service said 19 per cent were human caused, 75 per cent were started by lightning, while six per cent have unknown causes.

The wildfire service said in a provincial update on Friday that very high temperatures this week quickly shifted with the passage of a cold front on Thursday. That pattern could bring could bring high winds and dry lightning to some areas.

“We have strategically positioned crews and resources in the northeast to be prepared for intensifying conditions in areas where we already have fire on the landscape,” the service said.

It said increased fire behaviour was expected in June, “particularly in areas that have experienced year-over-year drought conditions, like the northeast corner of the province.”

“Through Friday and the weekend, windy conditions are expected to continue with more potential for thunderstorms on Saturday and Sunday across the northern half of the province,” it said.

Calliou said her community is a quiet, beautiful place where you can hear the sounds of the frogs in the spring, and geese when they migrate by, and she hoped its homes, land, and animals would be safe.

“Let’s hope by Sunday we have better news,” she said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025.

Canadian Press Staff, The Canadian Press