Metro Vancouver wildfire prompts evacuation alerts as Fraser Canyon residents go home

A few dozen properties in a village in Metro Vancouver are under evacuation alert due to a nearby wildfire, while evacuees in British Columbia’s Fraser Canyon may start returning home.

The blaze burning in Belcarra Regional Park has prompted those from 35 properties in the village of Anmore, north of Port Moody, to pack essential items and be ready to leave at a moment’s notice.

Acting Mayor Doug Richardson says staff are working to provide support to the community as needed.

The alerts come as residents in and around the Interior community of Boston Bar begin returning after weeks-long evacuation orders were downgraded to evacuation alerts.

The Fraser Valley Regional District says residents must stay ready to leave as the Brunswick Creek and Ainslie Creek wildfires, spanning more than 480 square kilometres, continue to burn out of control.

Wildfire destruction in the Interior mounted Wednesday, as authorities confirmed structures had been lost on about 120 properties outside Clinton, in addition to at least 230 homes razed near Okanagan Lake west of Vernon.