Matt Prouxl sits with his dog, Baily, by his RV trailer, along Beach Avenue in Peachland, British Columbia, Canada, on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. Matt, his wife and 18-year-old daughter, along with two other dogs, were evacuated from their home on Princeton Avenue the night before.
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British Columbia has declared a state of emergency as a fast-moving wildfire forced more than 20,000 people from communities in western Canada, destroying homes as it raced toward towns along Okanagan Lake. Premier David Eby announced the emergency Saturday as more than 100 wildfires burned across the province, nearly half of them out of control amid hot, windy weather and prolonged drought. The entire community of Summerland, home to about 12,000 people, was ordered evacuated overnight, along with about 8,000 people in and around nearby Peachland. Officials had not determined how many homes were destroyed.
