Wildfires in western Canada force more than 20,000 people to evacuate

More than 20,000 residents were forced to flee their homes overnight in western Canada as a rapidly growing wildfire threatened communities along British Columbia's Okanagan Lake. The Bald Range wildfire, first reported Friday evening, expanded dramatically, racing towards the towns of Summerland and Peachland.

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quickest-moving, fastest-growing

The entire community of Summerland, home to roughly 12,000 people, received an evacuation order. Additionally, about 8,000 residents in and near Peachland were also told to leave their properties. Officials are still assessing the extent of the damage, and the number of homes destroyed by the blaze has not yet been determined.

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I had to leave the EOC to come and get my family to leave this area. We're heading south.

Erick Thompson, an emergency official with the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen, described the wildfire as one of the "quickest-moving, fastest-growing" the region has ever seen. He himself had to evacuate his family from the emergency operations center.

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It's scary. It's moving fast.

Residents described the terrifying speed of the fire. Homeowner Kerry Gold and her husband, Mike Elsinga, fled their home around 12:30 a.m. after witnessing flames spreading rapidly over nearby mountains. "It's scary. It's moving fast," Gold said, recounting their hurried departure.

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You want to stay here and protect your home but you also don't want to get caught in it.