Officials say rain Saturday night helped fire crews make headway battling the blaze. (CBC)

The B.C. Forest Service says the Terrace Mountain fire in the Okanagan that is keeping over 1,000 people out of their homes is 50 per cent contained.

It rained heavily in the area Saturday night and the more than 250 firefighters battling the blaze near Fintry, between Kelowna and Vernon, made good headway in putting up fireguards.

But despite the progress, fire officials aren't ready to tell those on evacuation order that it's safe to go home.

On Friday, half the people that had been ordered to leave their homes earlier in the week were permitted home, though they are still under warning that they may be asked to leave on short notice.

Meanwhile, firefighters battling two fires in nearby West Kelowna are mopping up the remaining embers of the blazes that prompted a mass evacuation last weekend.

About 17,500 people remain on evacuation alert as a result of the Glenrosa and Rose Valley fires.