Video shows frightening drive through B.C. wildfire

A new video is providing a small glimpse of what it’s like to come face to face with an out of control wildfire.

Sally Aitken captured the stunning footage and shared it on her Twitter page on Sunday evening. The University of British Columbia professor writes that she was travelling through Hanceville, B.C., when she recorded the dramatic video.

“Video of our escape through the Hanceville fires yesterday evening. Hwy 20 was open & it was still daylight above,” Aitken tweeted Monday about the journey through the community located less than 100 kilometres southwest of Williams Lake, B.C.

The video shows a vehicle driving through the highway as trees on both sides are engulfed in flames. Thick smoke from the fires severely decreases visibility, making it difficult to see what was ahead of the vehicle.

“Holy smokes,” the woman can be heard saying as she peers through the glass windows beside her male companion. “Poor cows.”

The treacherous driving conditions included one heart-pumping moment where Aitken can be heard telling the driver of the vehicle to “go way to the left” on the highway to avoid the carnage caused by the blaze.

“Oh my goodness, I would go fast,” she said.

British Columbia has been hard hit by more than 200 reported wildfires in recent days, scorching around 400 square kilometres of land. More than 10,000 people have been displaced and hundreds of firefighters from other provinces are travelling across the country to help battle the blaze.

The video resonated with many on social media, with many viewers offering messages of support.

“Yikes. That looks perfectly terrifying. I’m glad you’re ok,” Mary O’Connor wrote in response to the video on Twitter.

“You were so calm. Stay safe. Hard to even fathom how scary that must have been. Nerves of steel,” added a Twitter user named Nancy.

“Wow Sally. That is intense! So glad you made it out ok. Stay safe,” tweetd Darren Irwin.

“My heart is pounding just watching video…can’t imagine living it. Fort McMurray all over again,” said Karen Cargnelli, referring to the massive wildfire that devastated northern Alberta last year.

Aitken assured people that she was fine, but admitted conditions are “brutal in the interior” of the province. She also acknowledged that this was an “exceptional situation” and “most roads that are open are safe.”

The self-proclaimed tree enthusiast saw plenty of trees burning. She noted that breathing was “a little hard, but not too bad,” yet potentially dangerous for people with respiratory issues.

However, she said the air quality wasn’t the most frightening part of the experience.

“The worst part was the fact it was total darkness inside that fire, you couldn’t see anything,” Aitken told Global News. “It was just black.”