Provincial State of Emergency
As of Saturday August 8, a State of Provincial Emergency has been declared in British Columbia. This declaration enables emergency services and first responders to access the tools and resources required to protect communities and support the emergency response efforts across the province.
There are no province-wide travel restrictions in place and although visitors are being asked to avoid non-essential travel to Peachland, Summerland, Penticton, and other communities under evacuation orders and alerts, the Thompson Okanagan and British Columbia as a whole are very large areas and there are many parts of the province and region that are still ready and open to welcome visitors.
Visitors that have existing travel plans within British Columbia and the Thompson Okanagan, are encouraged to contact the businesses you have reservations with and ask them to help you confirm that your plans can still go ahead as scheduled or adjust your plans to another area of the region or province if necessary. If you are already in the province and need support with changing plans, contact a local visitor centre. The staff can help you make alternate arrangements.
Please continue to stay up to date by checking Emergency Info BC, Drive BC, and BC Wildfire Service for the latest updates. We sincerely appreciate the efforts of the emergency responders working to protect our communities. Our thoughts go out to those affected by evacuations.
