By David Wiwchar

Mount Underwood fire now 3400 hectares

Emergency official host fire update

Aug 14, 2025 | 11:50 AM

Strong winds yesterday afternoon pushed the Mount Underwood fire to the northeast, but crews are hopeful the forcecasted rains will soon assist them in battling the blaze.

BC Wildfire Service Incident Commander Stefan Hood says rain won’t put out the fire, but it will help.

“The wind is looking to back-off a little bit, the temperatures are dropping, the relative humidity is increasing and hopefully all of this coming to a rain event that should help us limit fire growth,” he said.

Hood said Wednesday was an active day, as firefighters battled the blaze while dodging rolling debris on the steep, dangerous slopes.

There are currently 87 firefighters, 11 helicopters and 10 pieces of heavy equipment working on the 3400 hectare Mount Underwood fire.

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Port Alberni Mayor Sharie Minions said people should not be alarmed at this point, but should follow trusted local news sources and be prepared.

“There’s no reason to panic at this time,” she said. “I know that there’s been some maps going around on social media that are extremely concerning to people. We do know that the fire has moved closer to the City of Port Alberni. We knew that was happening and that was the reason why we issued a local state of emergency and we did issue the formal evacuation alert for the Cameron Heights area so this was not a surprise. The growth you’re seeing online is the growth we anticipated there’s no formal reason for anyone in the community to evacuate, but we do want people to be aware that the situation could change quickly and everybody needs to be prepared possibly for that.”

Emergency officials are urging residents to follow official channels only, including staying tuned to 93.3 The PEAK.

(l-r BCWS Coastal Fire Centre Information Officer Julia Carance, BCWS Incident Commander Stefan Hood, Port Alberni Mayor Sharie Minions, ACRD Vice-Chair Deb Haggard)