The province said a state of emergency lets the province enact emergency orders, which could include travel restrictions if people fail to heed calls to avoid non-essential travel to the central Interior and southeastern B.C.
If the power or data on your device is low, you can get wildfire updates on CBC Lite, our low-bandwidth, text-only website.
The British Columbia government has declared a provincial state of emergency as threatening wildfires force thousands to evacuate from homes in the Okanagan in the southern Interior and elsewhere.
Premier David Eby announced the state of emergency at a Friday press conference, saying the wildfire situation in B.C. has "evolved and deteriorated'' rapidly.
Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma says the number of people under evacuation order in B.C. went from 4,500 to 15,000 in a matter of an hour.
A further 20,000 people are under evacuation alert.
WATCH: | B.C. Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma on state of emergency:
At a press conference on Friday, Aug. 18, Ma urged people not to travel to the Okanagan, and to leave accommodations in the area for emergency workers and evacuees.
Eby said declaring a state of emergency "enables a number of legal tools for us to issue specific orders and to ensure that resources are available."
In a statement, the provincial government said a state of emergency lets the province enact emergency orders, which could include travel restrictions if people fail to heed calls to avoid non-essential travel to the central Interior and southeastern B.C.
Ma said limiting travel can help keep roads clear for first responders and free up accommodations for evacuees, emergency personnel and health-care workers.
Ma said the decision to declare a state of emergency was made on the advice of emergency management officials and experts from the B.C. Wildfire Service.
She said the ability to provide resources to fight fires on the front lines is enabled through the Wildfire Act. A state of emergency allows the province to compel co-operation in the fire fight from "unwilling partners,'' although co-operation has so far been excellent, she said.
Although not everyone has been so co-operative.
Jason Brolund, chief of the West Kelowna fire department told a press briefing Friday that some first responders became trapped while rescuing people who didn't heed warnings to leave as the McDougall Creek wildfire advanced rapidly toward West Kelowna, describing the development as a firefighter's "worst nightmare.''
