Wildfire near B.C.'s Coquihalla Highway triggers evacuation order and alerts

About 84 properties along the Coquihalla Highway in the British Columbia Interior are on alert and one other has been ordered to evacuate due to an intense wildfire that saw drivers go through showers of embers before the highway was shut down.

The Thompson-Nicola Regional District says the evacuation order and alerts are due to the Mine Creek fire burning near the highway between Hope and Merritt, which has reached 1,900 hectares in size.

The Coquihalla Highway was closed Wednesday in the stretch near the blaze and remains shuttered between Hope and Merritt, with motorists advised to take Highways 1 and 3 as alternatives.

Video shared on social media on Wednesday shows vehicles passing large trees engulfed in flames on both sides of the highway, before it was closed in the afternoon.

The BC Wildfire Service says the Mine Creek fire was displaying an intensity level of Rank 5 on a scale of six, indicating extremely vigorous surface fire activity or having an active crown fire.

B.C. Forests Minister Ravi Parmar had warned Wednesday that the province is expecting a rise in wildfire activity due to lightning in the forecast and recent high temperatures.

Metro Vancouver continues to be covered in haze from wildfires with an air quality warning in place for the Lower Mainland, after Parmar said the situation could worsen in the next few days.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout- BC Wildfire Service