Wildfire Service Warns Care

Despite the hot and dry conditions, there are still people who don’t seem to care about the wildfire danger.

Max Birkner, information officer with the the BC Wildfire Service, says they found 26 abandoned campfires in the Kamloops Fire Centre over the long weekend.

“We do recognize that most people are very vigilant, and that they do put out their fires, and we really appreciate that, however we did have those 26 abandoned campfires, so it’s still a concern  that some people are not being as careful as they should be.”

Birkner tells Kiss FM there were six new fires in the centre over the weekend, but none of the new ones grew to more than five hectares.

The wildfire danger has increased to high to extreme in most areas of the Kamloops Fire Centre — with no rain expected for a while.

An extreme rating means all the factors are at a critical point, where fires can start very easily.

“Most notably it is extreme in a lot of municipalities. For instance, Salmon Arm, Vernon, Kelowna, Kamloops, the areas right around the town, are extreme fire rating danger right now,” says Birkner.

Birkner says a combination of conditions determine the rating.

“The relative humidity, the winds, the temperatures, the actual fuel build up, and the fuel temperature is at a critical point where it would be very simple to start a forest fire.”

Birkner says there have been 54 fires this seasons in the Centre, and ten are currently burning.