Yahoo TV

STORY: At a news briefing in Prince Edward Island, Trudeau called the situation "extraordinarily serious," and said the federal government is "active in coordinating" with regional and local governments to protect residents and property.

Jerrad Schroeder, deputy manager at the Kamloops Fire Centre, told a separate news conference that conditions were favorable for firefighting overnight, but that lingering smoke was a problem.

He said the McDougall Creek fire was estimated to be burning almost 27,200 acres, around Kelowna city some 180 miles east of Vancouver, with a population of about 150,000.

British Columbia has declared a state of emergency, imposed a ban on non-essential travel to free up accommodations for evacuees and firefighters, and urged drone operators and others capturing images of the fires to stay clear of rescue workers.