Skip to content

Open fire ban starts Friday

Ban for Clearwater Fire Zone moved up one month due to warm, dry conditions

A ban on open fires will take effect in Clearwater Fire Zone starting at noon on Friday, May 15.

Unusually dry conditions caused Wildfire Management officials to move up the open burning ban one month from June 15.

“The main reason for the change was that the medium range forecast did not show any significant rainfall for the next 10 to 12 days,” said Vaughn McCaig, forest protection technician at Clearwater Fire Zone.

McCaig noted that the open burning ban does not include campfires, but added that even campfires can easily cause forest fires with the present conditions.

“Starting last Friday there’s been a pocket of very dry air over Clearwater and the rest of the central Interior,” he said. “We had 12 to 15 per cent relative humidity over the weekend, which is very dry.”

Similar drying trends have been recorded at higher elevation weather stations such as at Coldscaur, Berry and Harbor lakes.

The BC Forest Service weather station in Clearwater recorded 16 mm of rainfall during April, compared to a 10-year average of 25.

The first part of May has continued the drying trend.

The open burning ban applies not just to Clearwater Fire Zone but to all of the Kamloops Fire Centre, which stretches from the northern boundary of Wells Gray Park to the U.S. border.

Specifically, prohibited activities include:

• The burning of any waste, slash or other materials (piled or unpiled) larger than one-half metre by one-half metre.

• The burning of more than two open fires of any size at the same time.

• Stubble or grass fires of any size over any area.

• The use of fireworks, sky lanterns or burning barrels of any size or description.

Clearwater Fire Zone has responded to two callouts so far this season –  one in East Blackpool on April 19, the second in Blackpool near the end of Caroline Road on Monday. Blackpool Fire Department had Monday's fire under control in a short time.

 

The zone has two Initial Attack crews again this year. The new crew leaders are Ben Louwerse and Jessie Akers.