Thinking of Retiring to the Okanagan Think Again!
By Richard Dowson Opinion/Commentary
As of August 13, 2026 B.C. Forest Fires (Wild Fires) and in particular the Bald Range fires continue to burn in the Summerland and Peachland area of the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia. More than 20,000 people have been evacuated. Homes have been destroyed.
Forest Fires in the Okanagan are a regular, historic occurrence.
The following summary of notable fires was prepared by Gwyn Evans, Head of Archives, Vernon Museum, Vernon British Columbia. I’ve added information about the 2003, 2023 and 2026 fires.
• 1901 – South Okanagan
• 1917 – Eastern hillside above Kalamalka Lake
• 1920s – Silver Star Mountain
• 1930s – Early ski reports noted fire damage from previous years
• 1940 – Sugar Lake area
• 1950 – Kingfisher
• 2003 – Okanagan Mountain Park fire – Burned 25,912 Hectares, destroyed 239 home and forced the evacuation of 27,000 people (see map)
• 2021 – White Rock Lake fire
• 2023 – Shuswap area and the McDougall Creek, Central Okanagan fires – “August 2023; extreme drought – record-hot summer – temperatures reaching 36°C and relative humidity dropping to 17% in the Kelowna…”. (Wikipedia) – 30,000 evacuated – 303 structures destroyed – insured costs exceeded $720 million (IBC) – largest insured loss in B.C. history (IBC)
• 2026 – Summerland and Peachland – hot, dry summer - The Bald Range Fire that led to the evacuation of Summerland started August 7, 2026. 20,000 people evacuated
Geography of the Okanagan Valley
The valley sits in a ‘rain shadow’. Rainfall is ‘squeezed out’ as west coast weather systems travel over the Coast Range on the west side of the Okanagan. The result; drought is a regularoccurrence. This B.C. Wildfire Services map shows theOkanagan ‘rain shodow’ in Red.
Why is there so much costly devastation from fires in the Okanagan?
Because more people are moving to and living in wildfire-prone zones of the Valley.
For more than 125 years of recorded history the Okanagan Valley has experience regular, large forest fires (wildfires).
Past history of Wildfires in the Okanagan suggest the pattern will continue.
Writer Richard Dowson is a retired educator.
He is known for his frequenting local coffee shops and other places seniors gather.
In a previous life he wrote comedy for CHED in Edmonton.
His views may or may not reflect the views of this publication.