It’s been a relatively slow fire season around the Lakes District, but according to the B.C. Wildfire Management Branch (WMB), recent hot and dry weather means that things could change quickly and dramatically.
“With the hot, dry conditions that we have been experiencing this week, the fire danger rating in the Northwest Fire Centre has risen to high,” siad Suzanne Pearce, WMB information officer. “The Nadina Fire Zone - which encompasses the Lakes District - in high to extreme fire danger.”
There are no active fires in the Northwest fire zone, although initial attack crews and unit crews remained on stand-by all weekend just in case.
The lack of action around Burns Lake doesn’t mean a holiday for the local unit crew.
“The Burns Lake unit crew was deployed to the Yukon approximately two weeks ago,” said Pearce.
The 20-person unit crew returned to Burns Lake last weekend. While the were away, initial attack crews were on hand in case anything sparked up.
“As we are now moving into what is typically the busiest period of our fire season, homeowners should educate themselves on how to reduce the risk of wildfire damage to their homes and property,” she said. “Residents can find more information on how to FireSmart their home and property at www.firesmartcanada.ca or www.bcwildfire.ca”
This time of the year, dry forest fuel can be ignited by not only the obvious - campfires and cigarette butts - but also exhaust from ATV’s and sparks from chainsaws.