British Columbia wildfire forces 20,000 from Summerland, Peachland
What's new: Summerland declared an emergency, lost power and told residents to boil water after its treatment plant was bypassed.
A fast-moving wildfire in British Columbia forced the evacuation of roughly 20,000 people from Summerland and neighboring Peachland as the Bald Range fire grew to about 5,000 hectares. Summerland declared a state of emergency early Aug. 8, and officials said the wildfire knocked out power and disrupted water treatment, prompting a boil water notice after untreated water entered the system. The blaze started about 15 kilometers west of Summerland and remained out of control. Across British Columbia, authorities had issued 39 evacuation orders and 49 alerts, with about 1,500 firefighting personnel deployed. Canada has burned through 3.9 million hectares this year as hot, dry weather intensified wildfire risk.