PRINCE GEORGE – A Category Two and Three burning ban will kick in next week. Remarkably early in the wildfire season.
“It’s not unheard of to have an early open fire prohibition like we did in mid April 2020,” explains Sharon Nickel with the BC Wildfire Service.”
In the meantime, the City is already preparing for wildfire season, staging meetings to ensure everyone from the fire department to the communications folks are ready.
“I think there’s no doubt that within the province, I think provincially we’re gearing up,” says Tanya Spooner, Manager of Emergency Programs.
“Certainly within the City, we know that we play a key role every year in evacuation response. I have no doubt that we’re going to be doing the same this year.”
The intense drought experienced in the region is a serious cause for concern for wildfire officials, but as yet, they have yet to kick in the Emergency Operations Center.
“We’re at a heightened level of awareness right now anyway. We’re doing our preseason planning that in smaller communities that don’t have those positions might be done at a level one EOC. We will likely open our EOC as soon as the first major fire of the season starts in preparation for the possibility of receiving evacuees,” says Spooner.
This is the time of year people in this region start thinking about camping or heading to the cabin. This early ban will not affect them yet.
“Personal campfires of that half meter high by half-meter wide are not included in the prohibition at this time. But other activities are still like fireworks, sky lanterns, burn barrels and burn cages are included with the Category Two burn ban, as well as the Category Three, which are kind of those larger pile burns that you see a lot of folks doing to clear up some of the fuels.”
