Out of control wildfire shuts down Sooke Potholes Regional Park

An out of control wildfire is burning just north of Sooke Potholes Regional Park, prompting the District of Sooke to shut down the park.

The blaze was discovered on Monday, July 22nd at around 2:47 p.m.

According to the District, crews are on-site battling the flames, but in the meantime the park will be closed.

“Emergency crews, including mutual aid partners and BC Wildfire Service, are actively responding to the incident,” said a District of Sooke spokesperson.

The Spring Salmon Place (KWL-UCHUN) Campground near the area is also being evacuated.

“As a precaution, the campground is being evacuated and all persons are asked to avoid the area.”

The District added that this is an evolving situation, and more information will be provided as it becomes available.

The BC Wildfire Service said there are three initial attack crews, three response officers, and three helicopters providing bucketing support in battling the fire. Staff from the CRD are also on scene.

#Sooke Potholes Closed Due to Wildfire Activity N. of Park: Due to a wildfire located north of Sooke Potholes Park, the park is closed until further notice. Emergency crews, incl mutual aid partners + BC Wildfire Service, are actively responding to the incident. Avoid the area.

— SookeCa (@SookeCa) July 22, 2024

As of this publication, the blaze is predicted to be around 3 hectares in size and is believed to be human-caused.

Wildfire smoke from the fire is visible across the Greater Victoria region.

We are aware there is a fire in the Sooke Potholes area and it is causing lots of smoke in Saanich. But if you do see a ???? please call 9-1-1.

— Saanich Fire Department (@SaanichFire) July 22, 2024

Sooke Potholes Park is closed until further notice due to a wildfire north of the park. Emergency crews, including @BCGovFireInfo, are responding. The Spring Salmon Place (KWL-UCHUN) Campground near the area is also being evacuated. Stay clear of the area. More info:… https://t.co/YDJbfFkKjj

— Emergency Info BC (@EmergencyInfoBC) July 23, 2024

Throughout all of coastal BC, there is a fire ban in place on all types of fires right now. This includes campfires of any size.

Currently, there are 306 active wildfires across all of BC, but this blaze is the only one on Vancouver Island.

More to come on the Sooke Potholes fire as information becomes available.