VERNON, British Columbia (AP) — A fast-moving wildfire destroyed about 230 homes in an Indigenous community in western Canada, officials said Tuesday, making it one of the country’s most destructive fires in recent years.
Dan Wilson, chief of the Okanagan Indian Band, said the Bradley Creek wildfire devastated much of the reserve near Vernon, about 440 kilometers (275 miles) northeast of Vancouver.
“It was hard to recognize my community from the air with all the structures and the forest gone,” Wilson said after surveying the area by helicopter.
The destruction ranks among Canada’s worst recent wildfires. A 2024 blaze in Jasper, Alberta, destroyed about 350 homes, while the 2023 McDougall Creek wildfire, also in British Columbia’s Okanagan region, destroyed about 200 homes.
Canada has endured increasingly destructive wildfire seasons in recent years, with smoke from the blazes repeatedly spreading across North America and triggering widespread air-quality alerts.
Wilson called the devastation “surreal” and said it was one of the darkest days in the band’s history. The fire erupted late Friday and was driven by wind gusts of up to 115 kilometers (71 miles) per hour.
“The fire spread so fast that some of our members only had five minutes to evacuate,” he said.
Wilson said aerial firefighting crews helped save critical infrastructure, including a daycare center and a newly built school, by repeatedly dropping water on the area.
Among those forced to flee were Louis and Shorty Fred, who said they escaped Saturday with flames close behind them.
“I’ve been living here all my life, and I’ve really never seen anything like this,” Louis Fred said. “Even 2021 was bad. It was huge. But the wind wasn’t nothing like compared to this one.”
About 8,000 people have been evacuated across British Columbia, Emergency Management Minister Kelly Greene said. There were 37 evacuation orders Tuesday, with conditions changing hourly.
The BC Wildfire Service said about 120 wildfires were burning across the province, roughly 50 of them out of control. In addition to Bradley Creek, major fires were burning near the communities of Boston Bar, Clinton and Kimberley.
The Bradley Creek wildfire burns near a home, in Vernon, British Columbia, Monday, Aug. 3, 2026. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)
Cattle walk and graze at a ranch as the Bradley Creek wildfire burns in the distance, in Vernon, British Columbia, Monday, Aug. 3, 2026. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)
CINCINNATI (AP) — Elly De La Cruz and Sal Stewart drew walks leading off the eighth inning against Hogan Harris and both scored on wild pitches to help the Cincinnati Reds hand the Athletics a sixth straight loss, 5-4 on Tuesday night.
Julian Garcia (2-2) struck out two in a scoreless eighth, and Emilio Pagán gave up two singles in the ninth before finishing for his 12th save.
Harris (3-1) threw a wild pitch to Eugenio Suárez on a full count, allowing the go-ahead run to score.
The Athletics had a 36-36 record on June 15 but have gone 9-32 since. The Reds (54-58) have won four of five.
Reds starter Brady Singer allowed three runs on five hits over six innings on his 30th birthday. He walked three and fanned six.
J.T. Ginn worked six innings for the Athletics and also gave up three runs on five hits. It was his first start since July 18 against Washington, when he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before giving up a hit and developing a blister that landed him on the injured list.
Tyler Soderstrom doubled and scored on Jeff McNeil's single in the fourth, and Jacob Wilson had a two-run double in the fifth for the Athletics.
Héctor Rodríguez walked leading off the fifth in his big league debut after being called up from Triple-A Louisville. He took third on a double by Matt McLain and both scored on a single by De La Cruz. De La Cruz took an extra base on the throw home, took third on a wild pitch and scored on a sacrifice fly by Stewart to tie it at 3-all.
Henry Bolte scored on a throwing error by shortstop De La Cruz to put the Athletics up 4-3 in the seventh.
Athletics LHP Jacob Lopez (5-4, 5.79 ERA) starts Wednesday opposite Reds RHP Rhett Lowder (3-7, 5.42).
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Cincinnati Reds' Sal Stewart, left, reacts after diving across home plate to score the go-ahead run on a wild pitch by Athletics pitcher Hogan Harris, right, during the eight inning of a baseball game in Cincinnati, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Cincinnati Reds pitcher Brady Singer throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Athletics in Cincinnati, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz reacts as he scores on a wild pitch by Athletics pitcher Hogan Harris in the eighth inning of a baseball game in Cincinnati, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz runs to home plate to score on a wild pitch by Athletics pitcher Hogan Harris in the eighth inning of a baseball game in Cincinnati, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Cincinnati Reds' Sal Stewart dives across home plate to score the go-ahead run on a wild pitch by Athletics pitcher Hogan Harris during the eight inning of a baseball game in Cincinnati, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
