Two spot blazes reported Sunday near Merritt; July Mountain, Brenda Creek see growth

The BC Wildfire Service is reporting two new spot blazes near Merritt.

The two fires are both measured at just 0.009 hectares in size.

One is located West of town along Highway 8 towards Lower Nicola. The suspected human caused fire is near Stumbles creek.

The second fire is South of town near Sterling Creek. The cause of the fire is currently unknown.

Further out from Merritt, the Bluey Lake wildfire saw zero growth over the weekend and is still be measured at 15 hectares. Despite the lack of growth, the fire is still listed as ‘out of control’ as of Monday morning.

The July Mountain Fire has grown since Friday and is now listed as a ‘Wildfire of Note’ at 400 hectares in size. The TNRD has issued an evacuation alert for 25 properties in the area. The suspected cause of the fire is lightning.

The Brenda Creek Wildfire also grew over the weekend to 480 hectares. Multiple agencies including the TNRD have issued evacuation alerts for the region. Yesterday 23 firefighters, two helicopters and 11 pieces of heavy equipment were on site.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Currently there is 300 active wildfires burning across the province, 115 are within the Kamloops Fire Centre.