B.C. storm causes new wildfires, airport delays after more than 7K lightning strikes

A strong system of thunderstorms in British Columbia has sparked new wildfires, with more than 7,000 lightning strikes within 24 hours between Saturday and Sunday.

B.C. Wildfire Service said on Sunday the province had experienced a subtropical weather system that brought high temperatures and widespread lightning.

“There were lightning-caused wildfires in all southern fire centres yesterday after more than 7,000 strikes were recorded,” the service said in its provincial situation report.

The service said many of the areas affected by lightning received a good amount of precipitation, however, which helped decrease fire behaviour and the likelihood of new starts.

While it did not specify how many were sparked by lightning, the service said 57 new fires had started in the last 24 hours. Another 15 were declared out during the same period.

There are 172 active wildfires in the province as of Sunday.

The province cautions that hot, dry and windy conditions are expected to return this week, which could increase the potential for fire activity. Conditions could also lead to holdover fires, which are lightning-caused fires where heat smoulders undetected until hotter, drier and windier conditions lead to more visible smoke.

Saturday’s storm didn’t just cause wildfires, it also caused disruptions for airports.

Flights at Vancouver International Airport were delayed for hours, and many arriving planes couldn’t taxi to their gates after landing.

“We were on the tarmac for four-and-a-half hours and there was very little to no information that was relayed to the pilot that was relayed to us, so they were struggling to get information from the airport authority,” said David Cooper, who had arrived from one flight.

In a statement to Global News, Vancouver International Airport said the duration of the storm meant flights could not depart from 9:30 p.m. Saturday until 2:55 a.m. Sunday.

The airport said as a result, officials activated its terminal response team and called in additional staff to support passengers.

“Although the weather has improved, some flights continue to be impacted today at YVR,” the statement said on Sunday. “We are working closely with our airport partners to support recovery of their schedule and get passengers on their way as quickly as possible.”