Fatigue sets in with British Columbians out of their homes well into 2nd week

George and Sherry Broomfield thought they were headed out on a two-day motorcycle trip when they left their home near Williams Lake, B.C.

It never occurred to the Broomfields they wouldn't be allowed to return home.

But a week and a half later, this is where they find themselves, as wildfires forced the entire city to evacuate, cutting off their access.

"We have a change of clothes, a pair of shorts each, a pair of shoes besides our boots and leather. And yeah, here we are," said George as he and his wife registered at an evacuation reception centre in Kelowna.

George and Sherry are staying with friends in Summerland but with no end in sight, they don't want to wear out their welcome.

"It's hard on [our friends] trying to buy all the groceries and stuff," George said.

"We're contributing but we've never had to do this before."

Jolene Brolund and Alex Miller have a similar story.

The couple were on a weekend holiday with their children when the wildfires threatened homes near Williams Lake earlier this month.

They, too, are in Kelowna, staying with relatives as they try to stay informed about the fires that rage around the city.

"It's stressful," said Miller  "Lots of misinformation. Lots of hoping that things would get better but slowly they went from good, to bad to worse."

The two families are among an estimated 36,600 people who have fled fires in B.C.

The largest evacuation order covers Williams Lake and the surrounding area, where about 24,000 have left their homes.

There are now 11 emergency reception centres across the province, including Surrey, Kamloops and Merritt.

The stress and fatigue evacuees feel is building each day, said 100 Mile House Mayor Mitch Campsall.

His community was evacuated more than a week ago when an aggressive wildfire jumped fire lines north of town.

Campsall said it's especially tough on small business owners who have had to shut down their operations.

"You know they want to get back. Business people want to get back to their businesses," he said.

"It's really hard on the economy. They're not making any money."

The lengthy wait is ending for some evacuees however.

Residents from Cache Creek, one of the first major population centre evacuated this summer, are being allowed home on Tuesday after 11 days out of their homes.