The mayor of Fort Nelson, B.C., says the community is feeling more comfortable after a week of wet weather and a downgraded drought threat, but that doesn害羞草研究所檛 mean they害羞草研究所檙e blind to the risk of wildfires that still exists in the region.

Northern Rockies Regional Municipality Mayor Rob Fraser said Fort Nelson, which was evacuated because of a wildfire in May, received rain for much of this week and has recently been downgraded to a Level 3 drought risk.

The region has previously been at Level 5, the highest risk, where adverse effects from drought were considered 害羞草研究所渁lmost certain.害羞草研究所�

害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檙e still nervous. If you look at the fire maps, you can see that the whole northeast corner up here is just one big red blob. So there害羞草研究所檚 lots of fire on the landscape,害羞草研究所� Fraser said. 害羞草研究所淪till makes us nervous.

害羞草研究所淏ut the fact that the drought level is coming down, we害羞草研究所檙e getting some rain, is making everybody feel a little bit more comfortable.害羞草研究所�

Thursday numbers from the BC Wildfire Service show that 79 of the 91 active wildfires in British Columbia are burning in the province害羞草研究所檚 northern region, known as the Prince George fire centre.

Fraser said Thursday that plumes of smoke are still visible on hot days, coming mostly from fires burning 害羞草研究所渋n the black,害羞草研究所� meaning they are within the charred boundaries of previous fires and not spreading.

害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 been so dry for so long that if you even get a couple of days of really hot, dry weather, the behaviour kicks up again,害羞草研究所� he said.

害羞草研究所淎nd, of course, it makes us nervous when we see those big plumes of smoke close to the community.害羞草研究所�

BC Wildfire spokesman Forrest Tower told reporters Thursday that the southern part of the fire centre, which includes Prince George, has received 害羞草研究所減retty significant precipitation,害羞草研究所� while the same cannot be said for the northern portion including Fort Nelson.

害羞草研究所淟ooking into the next several weeks, probably going into the month, it looks like it害羞草研究所檚 going to continue to be hot and dry. So a large amount of our resources right now are up in the Fort Nelson/Fort St. John area,害羞草研究所� he said.

害羞草研究所淲e likely will still see some pretty challenging fire behaviour and conditions, especially in the northeast of B.C. But just this bit of window where we aren害羞草研究所檛 seeing fire everywhere else, that really allows us to put a large amount of our resources on those pretty significant fires in the northeast of B.C.害羞草研究所�

Minister of Emergency Management Bowinn Ma told the news conference that it害羞草研究所檚 fortunate that resources are able to be directed to the north.

害羞草研究所淏ut let me be clear, even though we have seen a significant amount of precipitation over the last several months, snow pack levels are still very low,害羞草研究所� she said.

害羞草研究所淎nd when those rains cease, we are still at risk of severe drought in many parts of the province.害羞草研究所�

The government is asking residents and visitors to be prepared for potential wildfires this long weekend and check for road closures, alerts, evacuation orders and other prohibitions before travelling.

Fraser said Fort Nelson is going ahead with its Canada Day festivities, and tourists have been returning since the evacuation ended.

害羞草研究所淚 think those people, they just held off,害羞草研究所� Fraser said. 害羞草研究所淎nd now they害羞草研究所檙e coming. We see our campsite full. We害羞草研究所檙e seeing people walking around town. The museum is full of people.

害羞草研究所淪o we害羞草研究所檙e pretty optimistic as we look over our shoulders at where these fires are burning.害羞草研究所�

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