"The devastation is incredible," Chretien said after flying over the fire zone Sunday with Gordon Campbell, premier of the western Canadian province.

Chretien promised that Ottawa would assist those affected by the fire but did not say how much financial aid would be forthcoming.

Some of the 30,000 people forced from their homes in and around Kelowna on Thursday and Friday were able to return over the weekend, after winds died down and cooler temperatures lessened the intensity of the blaze.

Saturday morning, the fire came within 15 kilometers (nine miles) of the center of Kelowna, and had ravaged (73 square miles) 190 square kilometers of the hills overlooking the 100,000-resident town.

More than 500 firefighters and soldiers, backed by Canadair planes and a dozen helicopters, pitched in to fight the fire, 325 kilometers (202 miles) east of Vancouver.

Several areas of British Columbia have not seen a drop of rain for two months as the province weathers its driest summer since 1929. Authorities in Vancouver have even banned smoking in the city's largest park for fear of starting accidental fires in the tinder-dry landscape.

About 850 fires were raging in forests of British Columbia Sunday, with 3,200 people deployed to contain them, local government figures showed.

TERRA.WIRE