Highway 97, Okanagan Connector closed due to wildfire in Peachland

There is an out of control wildfire at Drought Hill in Peachland that has closed the Okanagan Connector. The fire is currently at five hectares and was discovered this afternoon between Drought Hill and the Highway 97C. BC Wildfire Service https://wildfiresituation.nrs.gov.bc.ca/incidents?fireYear=2025&incidentNumber=K51121&source=map and West Kelowna Fire Department are tackling the blaze. Police have asked the public to stay out of the area and boaters should be aware that they need to give space to helicopters and air tankers are going to be filling up with water from Okanagan Lake, according to a press release from RCMP. Both Highway 97 and Highway 97C https://www.drivebc.ca/?type=event&display_category=closures&id=DBC-79922  are closed in both directions in the area. The RCMP hasn’t said how long the roads will be closed for. The Central Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre has been activated. BC Wildfire currently suspects the fire was human caused. To contact a reporter for this story, email Jesse Tomas mailto:jtomas@infonews.ca  or call 250-488-3065 or email the editor mailto:news@infonews.ca . You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom mailto:tips@infonews.ca  and be entered to win a monthly prize draw. Find our Journalism Ethics policy here. https://infotel.ca/newsitem/code-of-ethics/it106782 We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. SUBSCRIBE to our awesome newsletter here https://infotel.ca/newsletter .