Evacuation order issued in Chetwynd, B.C., due to wildfire [Video]

Highway 97 between Chetwynd and Prince George, B.C., was closed and evacuations of some neighbourhoods in the District of Chetwynd ordered as a wildfire in the region grew rapidly on Wednesday.

The B.C. Wildfire Service says ground crews and air tankers are responding to the Wildmare Creek wildfire that grew to 0.5 square kilometres on Wednesday.

Fire information officer Sharon Nickel said the blaze was discovered around 4 p.m. PT, and is burning around 10 kilometres southwest of Chetwynd. The community is around 720 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, and 210 kilometres northeast of Prince George.

“The area is experiencing sustained winds and those are coming from the southwest,” she told CBC News on Wednesday evening. “That’s sort of pushing any kind of fire growth that we’re seeing toward the north-northeast … in the direction of Chetwynd.”

WATCH | Fire prompts evacuation order in Chetwynd: The fire was discovered around 4 p.m. PT on Wednesday, and is suspected to have been caused by human activity.

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