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A 19-hectare wildfire burning east of Kamloops is considered “being held,” which means it is not expected to spread beyond its boundaries.

B.C. Wildfire Service said 18 ground personnel will battle the fire on Monday, which is south of Hook Road and east of the Barnhartvale area of Kamloops.

Helicopters worked on the fire Sunday evening and three ground crew members stayed onsite overnight to tackle flare-ups.

By Sunday evening, the fire, originally estimated to be four hectares early Sunday afternoon, was believed to be more than four times that size.

Around 3:30 p.m., fire officials described the blaze as a fast-moving surface fire with candling trees but said it was not threatening nearby structures.

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Despite the fire growth, by early Sunday evening, the wildfire service said there continued to be no threat to nearby buildings.

With cooler temperatures, the fire activity slowed down overnight.

The fire is south of Hook Road approximately 25 kilometers from downtown Kamloops. Google Maps

The wildfire service suspects the fire was human-caused.

A CFJC reporter on the scene said the blaze is centred on a wooded rural property just outside of the boundary of Kamloops’ city limits and that local residents attempted to fight the blaze after it sparked, however the fire took off quickly.

The regional district area director said the Pritchard Volunteer Fire Department has also responded to do structural protection, despite the blaze being outside of its typical coverage area.

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Just before 3 p.m., area director Ken Gillis said the wildfire was not threatening homes and there had not been any evacuations.

At that time, Gillis said progress was being made on the fire but it was not under control.

Crews have been deployed to an area near Kamloops, the B.C. Wildfire Service announced on social media. Rick Niles