BC Wildfire Servicesa国际传媒檚 operations director says the province will continue to monitor the need for a campfire ban, but there isnsa国际传媒檛 plan for one just yet.
Cliff Chapman said Friday (May 17), during an update from Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma, that BC Wildfire Service monitors the conditions every single day, using sa国际传媒渁 real data-driven science approach to when wesa国际传媒檙e going to implement campfire bans.sa国际传媒
He said the number of campfires that lead to wildfires have significantly decreased.
sa国际传媒淭he people of British Columbia have kind of heard the warnings. They are very familiar with the conditions that we face and they are being more careful.sa国际传媒
With the recent rainfall and current temperatures, he said B.C. doesnsa国际传媒檛 need to implement a campfire ban yet.
But BC Wildfire Service will continue to monitor and sa国际传媒渋mplement one as quickly as we need to.sa国际传媒
In a series of tweets after the update, BC Wildfire Service said human-caused fires are a real concern in B.C., accounting for about 40 per cent of all wildfires in the province. But human-caused wildfires are more than just campfire related; they can be caused by industry, trains, open burning, power lines, reflected lighting or sa国际传媒渞eally anything other than lightning.sa国际传媒
Of the more than 2,200 wildfires in B.C. in 2023, 84 were caused by campfires.
As of noon Friday, the majority of B.C. was under category 2 and 3 bans, specifically in the Cariboo, Coastal, Kamloops, Northwest and Prince George fire centres. There is only a Category 3 ban in place in the Southeast.
Category 2 and 3 includes backyard and industrial burning, along with fireworks, sky lanterns and binary exploding targets.
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There are currently 125 active wildfires in the province, Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma said Friday (May 17) during an update on the wildfire situation in the provincesa国际传媒檚 northeast.
The majority of those are in the Prince George Fire Centre sa国际传媒 the largest region sa国际传媒 in northeastern B.C.
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In B.C., human-caused fires are a real concern. Most years they account for around 40 per cent of all wildfires in the province.
sa国际传媒 BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo)