<span style="color: #222222;">Residents in parts of British Columbia have been ordered to evacuate as wildfires are raging across the Canadian province following a record heat wave that officials say contributed to hundreds of deaths. By yesterday, 176 fires were considered active across BC, including 76 that were reported over the past two days, according to a BC Wildfire Service<br />''dashboard.<br />''<br />''The Thompson-Nicola Regional District, which covers 11 municipalities in the centre of the province, said nine evacuation orders were given urging residents to immediately leave their homes. Four evacuation s, which advise residents to prepare to leave on short notice, were also active. </span><br />''<br />''About 12,000 lightning strikes were also reported across the province on Thursday alone, according to reports.<br />''<br />''The fires come after Canada's westernmost province experienced record-breaking temperatures over the past week. <br />''<br />''719 deaths were reported between June 25 and July 1 – three times more than would normally occur in a similar period. Many of the deaths were among elderly people living alone in private residences with minimal ventilation. More than 75,000 hectares of forest have also been lost from these devastating wildfires.<br />''<br />''<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">Experts have pointed to climate change as driving the early wildfire season and recent heat, which meteorologists said was linked to a so-called "heat dome" – a weather system that traps in hot air – that descended on the west coast, as well as on the Pacific Northwest of the United States.</span><br />