Event CategoryDisaster
Event GroupNatural
Event SubgroupMeteorological - Hydrological
Event TypeWildfire
PlaceBritish Columbia
Event Start DateJuly 28, 2010
Event End DateSeptember 8, 2010
CommentsBritish Columbia, July 28 to September 8, 2010. Due to little precipitation and lightning strikes, from July 28 to July 31, the number of fires in British Columbia went from 600 to 1,100. On August 18, strong winds blew through the interior causing substantial growth of the fires. Throughout the wildfire season, approximately 461 homes (1,383 individuals) were ordered to evacuate the region and hundreds of other homes were put on evacuation alert. The hardest hit areas were Chilcotin, Houston, Williams Lake, Burns Lake and Fraser Lake. All evacuation orders and alerts were removed by the first week of September. Approximately 330,000 hectares burned due to 1,673 fires. Over 1,400 personnel from out-of-province assisted with fighting the fires. Two air tanker pilots died in a plane crash while fighting the fires. Both the city of Vancouver and the Government of Alberta issued air quality warnings due to smoke caused by the fires.
Fatalities2
Injured / Infected0
Evacuated1383
Estimated Total Cost$257,339,000
Federal DFAA Payments$37,339,000
Provincial DFAA PaymentsUnknown
Provincial Department Payments$220,000,000
Municipal CostsUnknown
OGD CostsUnknown
Insurance PaymentsUnknown
NGO PaymentsUnknown
Utility - People Affected0
Magnitude0.0