Canada: BC Introduces Travel Restriction Amid Wildfire Crisis

On Saturday, Canada's British Columbia government said it will implement a restriction on non-essential travel to areas affected by wildfires amid its state of emergency.

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David Eby, premier of the province, announced the order to free up accommodations for evacuees. The British Columbia government has declared a provincial state of emergency as thousands evacuated from their homes.

Under the order, the government is restricting tourist-related, non-essential travel to communities including Kelowna, Kamloops, Oliver, Osoyoos, Penticton and Vernon for anyone planning to stay in temporary accommodation.

The British Columbia authorities will ensure that sufficient temporary accommodations are available to those evacuating or involved in fighting fires, Eby said, adding that there are some 35,000 people on evacuation orders across the province and another 30,000 on evacuation alert.

According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center, there are 1,039 active forest fires in Canada, around 380 of which are in British Columbia with over 160 out of control.

So far, over 35,000 people have been forced to flee their homes by an unprecedented wave of wildfires threatening several cities in western and northern Canada.

The seriousness of the situation across Canada forced Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Saturday to convene the Incident Response Group for the second time in 48 hours, made up of ministers and senior officials with competencies in natural disasters.