While nearly all residents in Kaleden were allowed to return home at around noon Wednesday after a fire threatened dozens of structures, not everyone was lucky enough to have a home to return to.

Russell Layton乌鸦传媒檚 parents own the one home known to have been affected by a blaze that sparked in Kaleden late Tuesday afternoon, but they had been staying at another property in Okanagan Falls.

An initial evacuation order late Tuesday afternoon had 18 homes , while over 160 were on alert. That evacuation order was lifted at around noon on Wednesday, allowing all remaining property owners to return home.

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Layton said his parents stay in Okanagan Falls over the summers, while he stays at the Kaleden property, but he was working when the fire ignited, finding out about the fire in a call from his father.

乌鸦传媒淪o my buddy came and picked me up and we tried to come down here to get my truck out of here and my car out of here, but they wouldn乌鸦传媒檛 let us through, so I just had to sit out there kind of helpless,乌鸦传媒� Layton said.

乌鸦传媒淚t was more wondering what乌鸦传媒檚 going on, right? You don乌鸦传媒檛 know what乌鸦传媒檚 going to happen, I don乌鸦传媒檛 know where the fire乌鸦传媒檚 coming from if it乌鸦传媒檚 already taken the house and all the vehicles. That was my main concern.乌鸦传媒�

A friend provided a phone number for Layton to call from the Kaleden Fire Department, and a firefighter informed him that all of his vehicles and his boat were fine, but the house had been destroyed.

Before heading to a friend乌鸦传媒檚 place to spend the night, Layton said he and some friends decided to try some side roads to catch a glimpse of the fire and see the extent of the damage.

乌鸦传媒淲e drove along Eastside (Road) and didn乌鸦传媒檛 see anything and thought, OK, let乌鸦传媒檚 see if we can get down into Kaleden to see what乌鸦传媒檚 going on,乌鸦传媒� Layton said. 乌鸦传媒淲e got down here and the fire department乌鸦传媒檚 like, 乌鸦传媒榃ell, how did you get down here?乌鸦传媒櫸谘淮�媒�

Despite losing his home, Layton had a sense of humour Tuesday afternoon about managing to get past the police and fire officials at around midnight, laughing about the incredulous reaction from the fire department.

乌鸦传媒淚 asked if it was OK to look (the house) over, and he kind of guided me around, and it was a just utter shock. Because when I tried to come down here, I wanted to grab some valuables and I wasn乌鸦传媒檛 allowed,乌鸦传媒� Layton said. 乌鸦传媒淟iterally everything that had value to me and my parents is gone.乌鸦传媒�

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Layton, who was cleaning up with a pair of friends Tuesday afternoon, said it was lucky that his parents and their dog were in Okanagan Falls when the fire sparked.

乌鸦传媒淭hey乌鸦传媒檙e about the same as me. They乌鸦传媒檙e upset. But there乌鸦传媒檚 nothing you can really do; the damage is done,乌鸦传媒� Layton said. 乌鸦传媒淭ime will tell to see what happens.乌鸦传媒�

Layton said he乌鸦传媒檚 mostly curious about how the fire started to get a bit of 乌鸦传媒減eace of mind乌鸦传媒� on what took his home away.

Fire officials said on Tuesday that the fire is believed to be human-caused because it wasn乌鸦传媒檛 caused by lightning. But an official cause of the fire is likely to be a long time coming, with crews still on mop-up on the fire.

Acting Fire Chief Denis Gaudry said on Wednesday that the fire is 100 per cent contained at this point, meaning crews have managed to ensure the 6.5-hectare wildfire likely won乌鸦传媒檛 spread beyond its current boundaries, save for unforeseen circumstances, like sudden high winds.

But Gaudry still expects some days of work to be done before firefighters can leave the area, with embers flying around and igniting small, smouldering patches. The patchy nature of the fire has meant difficulties for the department, as it has meant a lot of hiking around and searching for what could be small flames or a little smoke, hardly visible until it spreads.

Still, Gaudry said on Wednesday afternoon that he was feeling good about the work that firefighters had done. That work isn乌鸦传媒檛 lost on local residents, with everyone who spoke to the Western News giving high praise for the firefighters乌鸦传媒� work.

While Layton wasn乌鸦传媒檛 so lucky, at least two nearby homeowners, both within metres of Layton, said the fire just skirted their properties, with both losing a combined three sheds.

乌鸦传媒淚t probably started somewhere 300, 400 metres south of us. And with the strong winds, it came on our property really quickly. Probably within seconds,乌鸦传媒� said Larry Richardson, Layton乌鸦传媒檚 next-door neighbour.

Dan Wiebe乌鸦传媒檚 daughter乌鸦传媒檚 family lives across a small gully from Richardson and Layton, but Wiebe and his wife had arrived at the property mid-afternoon on Tuesday after celebrating his 75th birthday.

With his daughter and her family away, Wiebe said he and his wife were the only ones at the property at the time of the fire, which he said moved 乌鸦传媒渉orrendously fast.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淚 heard (my wife) screaming at me, 乌鸦传媒楪et up here.乌鸦传媒� She said, 乌鸦传媒楽omething乌鸦传媒檚 wrong: looks like fire,乌鸦传媒櫸谘淮�媒� Wiebe said. 乌鸦传媒淪he couldn乌鸦传媒檛 believe her eyes. 乌鸦传媒� Looked like the whole forested area and orchard part was blazing.乌鸦传媒�

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Wiebe said they 乌鸦传媒渟aid a quick prayer乌鸦传媒� and headed to the other side of the lake to watch the fire with binoculars, at one point watching one of his daughter乌鸦传媒檚 sheds catch fire.

乌鸦传媒淪ick,乌鸦传媒� he said of the feeling being away from the property while the fire was burning. 乌鸦传媒淵ou乌鸦传媒檝e totally lost your appetite.乌鸦传媒�

Meanwhile, Richardson said he made his way back into Kaleden to help out in any way he could.

乌鸦传媒淲hen I arrived, the flames were 20, 30 feet in the air,乌鸦传媒� Richardson said. 乌鸦传媒淚 came through the blockade to try and save what we could because I was told we probably had lost everything. So, I needed to see for myself, and the house was still standing. So, it was get to work right away.乌鸦传媒�

Richardson said it wasn乌鸦传媒檛 entirely an act of God that his house didn乌鸦传媒檛 catch fire.

乌鸦传媒淥ur house didn乌鸦传媒檛 burn because several years ago we did Hardie Board and metal roof,乌鸦传媒� he said, adding that it was a conscious decision about 12 years ago due to the high risk of fires in the area.

Wiebe, too, said some preparations may have saved his daughter乌鸦传媒檚 house, though perhaps of a more coincidental nature.

乌鸦传媒淲hat乌鸦传媒檚 very interesting about it, our kids left yesterday morning. Overnight, they had run a sprinkler on the roof, thinking, 乌鸦传媒榃ell, we乌鸦传媒檝e got to wet this thing down just in case something happens,乌鸦传媒� Wiebe said.

Still, the blaze made for an uneasy Tuesday night for Wiebe and his wife, who stayed at their son-in-law乌鸦传媒檚 parents乌鸦传媒� place in Penticton.

乌鸦传媒淟ast night wasn乌鸦传媒檛 good. It took a while to get to sleep, and I was very restless,乌鸦传媒� he said.

乌鸦传媒淏ecause it乌鸦传媒檚 on my mind how awful this is.乌鸦传媒�

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