Firefighters report more progress against Canadian wildfires and wait for rain

By ROB GILLIES and JIM MORRIS
Associated Press

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Firefighters successfully prevented wildfires from destroying any more structures in a scenic region of British Columbia. That’s according to Canadian authorities, who said the prospect of rain raised hopes for the effort to contain the flames. Fire Chief Jason Broland said fire crews made more progress in the West Kelowna area known as a summer destination for families. He said the biggest challenge now is the region’s poor air quality, which he described as “choking.” The fire chief said teams surveying damaged neighborhoods expected to find at least 50 buildings destroyed, a number that he said would climb.