A telemedia conference call took place on Tuesday afternoon with the purpose of providing the latest information on wildfire fighting efforts across B.C.

Speaking to B.C.'s wildfire situation was Kevin Skrepnek, chief information officer for BC Wildfire Service in Kamloops.

Skrepnek reported that there were 219 fires burning across B.C. on Tuesday, July 11th, with 35 new fires on Monday.

"There continues to be active and extreme fire behaviour right across the board right now," said Skrepnek.

To date, there have been 599 fires across the province burning over 43000 hectares.

The current cost is estimated at $53.5 million so far.

"We are expecting a continuation of hot and dry conditions across the south with potentially some aggressive weather coming to the central part of the province tomorrow – potential winds, potential lightning. We're keeping a close eye on that in terms of how it's going to unfold," said Skrepnek.

"There's not a whole lot of rain really forecasted at all for the southern half of the province at the moment."

He added that the firefighting efforts remain focused on public safety and keeping the highways and evacuation routes open and that is going to continue to be the priority going forward.

In terms of the size of some of the more significant fires, he said there were too many to go through the entire list, but here's a list of the major fires currently burning in B.C.:

The Ashcroft fire is currently estimated at 7300 hectares in size.

Princeton is estimated at 2700 hectares in size.

The Gustafsen wildfire near 100 Mile House is estimated at 5000 hectares in size.

Two fires are burning near Williams Lake that are being managed as one incident. While they have not grown together, they're being managed as one.

One of them is the Wildwood fire which is approximately 2500 hectares and the second is the 150 Mile House fire which is also estimated at 126 hectares.

"We also have a complex of fires, which is basically a series of fires burning in a similar area," he said.

In the Chilcotin Region, the Hanceville complex fires are totaling an estimated 10000 hectares in size.

There's also a fire at Little Fort, currently estimated at 897 hectares in size, which means little change in yesterday's size.

The Green Mountain fire (originally called the Dragon Mountain fire) southeast of Quesnel is one of the fires that started on Friday. It is estimated at 1500 hectares in size.

There's also a fire in the Coastal Fire Centre about 52 km east of Bella Coola, the Precipice Creek fire is currently estimated at 800 hectares in size. There is a small evacuation order in place by the Central Coast Regional District for five homesteads in the area.

It is burning in a fairly remote area otherwise.

Again, it was stressed that warm and dry conditions are expected to persist in the Cariboo, Kamloops and Southeast Fire Centre.

These hot and dry conditions are expected to continue later into the week, along with the potential for lightning.

"And of course, that mix of wind and lightning was one of the key factors in terms of what we saw unfold on Friday," he said.

"We're continuing to focus on keeping people safe, keeping those highways open, evacuation routes open."

He added that with all the offers from the public to help, it's greatly appreciated, but that the assistance will continue to come from professionals in terms of fire fighting efforts.

"We're encouraging people to stay away from active incidents given how many fires we have across the area, given the challenges in terms of the transportation routes. We really don't want people putting in their own safety in jeopardy and certainly not the safety of our responders either."

Robert Turner with Emergency Management B.C. acknowledged the resilience of the people of B.C.

He added that the number of evacuees was hovering around 14,365, however there are many people who still not registered with the Red Cross.

Evacuees are encouraged to register with the Red Cross either by phone or online.

A new information hub is in progress, which will provide a one-stop shop with links to all the information an evacuee would need.

It will be at the BC government's website, but is still under construction.

Dr. Bonnie Henry is the deputy provincial health officer she talked about the information around smoke issues.

"So forest fire smoke is complex. It is a dynamic mixture of gasses and very small particles, depending on what of course is burning and the nature of the landscape. It can irritate those, particularly the respiratory system, which is no surprise when you breath in the smoke and particles. It can also cause acute effects around exacerbation of asthma or chronic obstructive lung disease, it can cause eye irritation and skin irritation as well. Air quality in the effected areas can be variable for days or weeks, and we have experience from previous fire seasons where the peak of the health effects from smoke may not be felt for several weeks after the peak of them," she said.

Photo Credit: Gov BCDr. Bonnie Henry

She advised residents to remain indoors in well-ventilated spaces including shopping malls, recreation centres, libraries and other public buildings.

While there may be situations in the future where residents with chronic illnesses may need to be transported elsewhere, she suggested remaining indoors or using an N95 respirator.

Stay tuned for more updates from the Province as well as information on air quality, weather advisories and fires of note within the Kamloops Wildfire region.