Achi news desk-
The snow is just starting to melt in some areas of BC, while others are already dealing with wildfires.
According to the BC Wildfire Service, there are currently more than 115 wildfires burning across the province.
Four of them started in the last 24 hours.
Residents in the Pine River area, south of Chetwynd, have now been allowed to go home after being ordered to evacuate on Wednesday due to the 50-hectare Wildmare Creek fire.
It is still listed as out of control.
The province says it is fully prepared, having learned from last year’s devastating wildfire season.
“We’re ready for an early start,” Bruce Ralston, BC’s forest minister, told Global News.
“We had hoped there wouldn’t be one, but we’ve prepared well for that. That’s one of the takeaways we learned from last season, which was the worst season in the province’s history.”
Sharon Nickel, fire information officer with the Prince George Fire Center, told Global News on Thursday that many parts of the state are seeing dry conditions.
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“Like much of the state, but particularly the Peace Region in the north-east of the state, we have been experiencing a fairly persistent drought since the fall of 2022,” he said.
“So, not only is it the usual time of year when we see grass fires in the region, that’s compounded with a lot of dry fuel.”
Nickel said the Prince George Fire Station still has fires from last season, fires burning underground that were not completely extinguished.
“We are aware that some of them are producing smoke within the perimeter,” he added. “That’s not uncommon. That should not be unexpected.”
Officials are warning of the dry conditions and the associated risk.
Mike Bernier, the member of the legislature for Peace River South, said there is “no moisture in the area,” which saw little to no snowpack this winter.
Julia Nelson, interim mayor of Chetwynd, said that her community was looking forward to a long and hot season.
“I don’t know if we have the solutions to be able to contain that and deal with it,” he said.
Nelson added that the province has moved the base for the BC Fire Service’s northern initial attack crew from Chetwynd to Dawson Creek, about 100 kilometers away.
“It’s only April, and our community was in huge danger of burning. That fire was a few kilometers away … and to me, that’s evidence that we need more help.”
— with files from The Canadian Press
& copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
