CAMPFIRES PROHIBITED ACROSS THE COASTAL FIRE CENTRE
PARKSVILLE – Effective noon July 23, all open burning, including campfires and fireworks, will be prohibited across the Coastal Fire Centre to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety.
This ban applies to open fires of any size, campfires, fireworks, tiki torches and burning barrels. The ban does not apply to cooking stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes, or to portable campfire apparatus with a CSA or ULC rating using briquettes, liquid or gaseous fuel, that are not capable of producing a flame longer than 15 centimeters.
Portable campfire apparatus that do not meet these conditions are prohibited. This prohibition is necessary due to dry forest fuels and a forecast for a prolonged period without substantial rain. The public is urged to exercise caution on forested land with any activity that could lead to a wildfire. Please discard cigarettes carefully and limit movement of ATVs and motorcycles through tall grass and undergrowth.
This ban covers all BC Parks, Crown and private lands, but does not apply within the boundaries of local governments that have forest fire prevention bylaws and are serviced by a fire department. Please check with civic authorities for any restrictions before lighting a fire.
Campfires in the West Vancouver Island Fog Zone are exempt from this prohibition. The West Vancouver Island Fog Zone is a stretch of land two kilometres inland from the high-tide mark from Owen Point in the south, northward along the outer coast of Vancouver Island, around Cape Scott Provincial Park and southward to the boundary of the District of Port Hardy.
A map of the exempted area is available at
http://bcwildfire.ca/ftp/!Project/WildfireNews/7202010~102943_Fog%20Zone%20Map.jpg
Anyone found in violation of an open fire ban, including campfires, may be issued a ticket for $345. Should a wildfire occur as a result of recklessness, a person can be fined up to $1 million, or spend three years in prison and be ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs.
The ban will be in place until the public is otherwise notified.
The Coastal Fire Centre is responsible for wildfire response for about 2.1 million hectares of land. Geographically, the centre covers all the area west of the height of land on the coast Mountain range from the U.S./Canada border at Manning Park to Tweedsmuir Park in the north, the Sunshine Coast, the Lower Mainland, all of Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.
To report a wildfire or unattended campfire please call *5555 on your cell phone or toll free to 1 800 663-5555.
For the latest information on fire activity, conditions and prohibitions, visit the Wildfire Management Branch website at www.bcwildfire.ca .
For Facebook and Twitter updates, as well as details about evacuation orders and alerts, road conditions and air quality advisories, go to www.firesafebc.ca .
Media Contact:
Donna MacPherson
Fire Information Officer
Coastal Fire Centre
250 951-4209
For more information on government services or to subscribe to the Province’s news feeds using RSS, visit the Province’s website at www.gov.bc.ca .
Thank you for your attention.
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