Calmer winds on Sunday aided exhausted crews fighting a forest fire that has destroyed more than 240 homes and forced thousands of Kelowna, British Columbia, residents to flee.

After several nights in which wildfires lit up the sky and surrounding mountains with glowing red clouds of smoke and flame, a more serene view greeted residents as smoke gathered around the mountains bordering Lake Okanagan and Kelowna, British Columbia, just after sunset August 23, 2003.  [Reuters]

Prime Minister Jean Chretien made a brief visit to the fire scene, promising federal aid for rebuilding, and praising the spirit of residents grappling with one of the largest blazes in what has become the western Canadian province's worst forest fire season in at least 50 years.

The 48,400-acre Okanagan Mountain fire on Kelowna's southern edge continued to grow, but has not repeated the firestorm runs it made late on Thursday and Friday, when an estimated 26,000 people were forced to flee their homes.

Officials said the nearly 500 firefighters who have come from around the province were exhausted, but morale had recovered from Friday when the flames destroyed 244 homes, including three owned by local firemen.

"We're going to keep chasing this thing until it's done," said Kelowna Fire Chief Gerry Zimmermann.

The fire began Aug. 16 from a lightning strike.

The calm winds have allowed the crews to make progress building containment lines and put out small fires still burning in and around homes, but officials warned their battle against the flames was far from over.

Heavy smoke continued to pour from the mountains about 185 miles east of Vancouver.

The Okanagan Mountain fire is one of eight major blazes burning in British Columbia's southern interior region, which has not seen major rainfall this summer. With no rain in the forecast, officials are worried new fires will erupt.

Chretien surveyed the fire from a helicopter, visited displaced residents -- some of whom had just learned their houses were among those destroyed -- and thanked firefighters for their efforts.

AID FOR REBUILDING

Chretien said Ottawa would work with provincial officials on aid programs, but declined to give specifics.

"We're not here to debate this and that, we're together to stop the fire," he said in a joint appearance with British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell.

Campbell said it was too early to estimate the cost of fire damage to Kelowna or the other fires. A blaze still burning out of control north of Kamloops, British Columbia, destroyed 65 homes in early August.

Kelowna Mayor Walter Gray has vowed that the community of about 96,000 people would fully rebuild. "Other parts of the world do it. We can too," Gray said.

Political observers have tied Chretien's decision to visit the scene while the fire was still burning to criticism he got over maintaining a low profile during the recent blackout that hit Ontario and the U.S. Northeast.

Official Opposition Leader Stephen Harper of the Canadian Alliance Party was also in Kelowna on Sunday, but declined to question the timing of Chretien visit.

"We'll ask the hard questions late. This is not the time for partisan debate," Harper said.

As politicians were touring the area, residents in the hardest hit areas met privately with emergency officials to learn details about what properties had been destroyed by the fire on Thursday and Friday.

It took authorities more than a day to compile a list of the destroyed homes because of the extent of the destruction. Several of the homeowners could be seen consoling each other for support as they emerged from the meeting.

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