Wildfire season gets early start in BC north
By Contributor
While the southern part of the province deals with soggy soil, the Northwest Fire Centre is dealing with the start of fire season as eight new wildfires started thanks to lightning that moved through northern B.C.
Five of the fires are in the Cassiar Fire Zone and three are in the Skeena Fire Zone.
All eight fires are less than one hectare in size and are not threatening any communities or infrastructure at this time.
Two of the fires ignited near the Telegraph Creek airstrip. Air tankers and a helicopter were used to help control them until fire crews arrived onsite. Three initial attack crews, forest protection officers and helicopters are responding to the fires in the Skeena and Cassiar zones. Additional resources are available should the need arise.
As expected, the modified response fire southwest of Mount Edziza Provincial Park grew in size yesterday and is now estimated at 250 hectares. Despite this growth, the fire is not threatening any communities or infrastructure at this time.
Smoke from this fire may be visible to residents of Telegraph Creek, Dease Lake and Bob Quinn.
The Fire Danger Rating in the northern half of the Northwest Fire Centre has been “moderate” to “high” over the past week and the weather is expected to remain warm and dry today in that region.
With more lightning expected, the Northwest Fire Centre anticipates more fire starts in the next few days.
