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Mudslide shuts off Hwy 1 through Fraser Canyon as Coquihalla still closed due to wildfire

This leaves one route for any travellers: Highway 3 from Hope to Princeton
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Map of Spences Bridge Highway 1 closure on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2021. (Drive BC map)

Two of three highways connecting the Lower Mainland and B.C. Interior are currently closed.

As of Monday night (Aug. 16), Highway 1 was shut down indefinitely between Hope and Cache Creek due to a mudslide near Spences Bridge.

The Coquihalla (Highway 5) has been closed since Sunday, due to the raging July Lake wildfire.

This leaves one route for any travellers: Highway 3 from Hope to Princeton, before either using Highway 5A from there to Merritt and then using Highway 97 to Kelowna and Vernon.

On Tuesday, Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth urged anyone travelling for non-essential reasons to avoid the Thompson-Nicola and Okanagan regions to keep what routes are still available open for possible evacuations.

There are currently 264 wildfires burning in the province, with some of the largest and most threatening blazes around West Kelowna, Lytton and west of Prince George.


@ashwadhwani
ashley.wadhwani@bpdigital.ca

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About the Author: Ashley Wadhwani-Smith

I began my journalistic journey at Black Press Media as a community reporter in my hometown of Maple Ridge, B.C.
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