VANCOUVER - Several significant wildfires continue to burn in British Columbia but fire crews have made good progress despite ongoing dry conditions and hot weather.
All remaining evacuation alerts were removed Wednesday for hundreds of homes close to the nearly 18-square kilometre Mount Eneas wildfire burning near Peachland on the west side of Okanagan Lake.
Evacuation alerts were also lifted for properties near Spences Bridge as crews doused a bush fire that broke out earlier this week and prompted travel restrictions on Highway 1 north of Lytton.
The restrictions that required a pilot car to lead drivers through the fire zone were rescinded late Wednesday.
The BC Wildfire Service says it has handled 810 fires since the season began on April 1, slightly above the average, while 564 square kilometres of woodland has burned, down dramatically from the average of 1,072 square kilometres.
Campfire bans take effect Thursday across the Kamloops and southeast fire centres, adding to a similar ban imposed last week in the Coastal Fire Centre, as Environment Canada forecasts a heat wave gripping most of the province won't ease until early next week.
