The Donnie Creek wildfire burns in an area between Fort Nelson and Fort St. John, B.C., in this undated handout photo provided by the BC Wildfire Service. Hundreds of lightning strikes in many parts of British Columbia almost tripled the number of active wildfires in the province over the weekend, with the majority burning in central and northern B.C. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-BC Wildfire Service **MANDATORY CREDIT **
VANCOUVER – British Columbia is imposing a total campfire ban across the entire province, except Haida Gwaii, after lightning combined with tinder-dry conditions to spark a huge surge in wildfires over the weekend.
The measure, announced by Minister of Emergency Management Bowinn Ma and effective at 3 p.m., totally bans the smallest category 1 campfires, measuring up to 50 centimetres by 50 centimetres.
It expands on bans that already applied to certain regions or to larger fires.
Ma says the province is anticipating “continued extreme fire behaviour” after 115 fires were sparked by dry lightning over the weekend, with 311 fires now burning across the province.
She says 156 people are under evacuation orders across B.C., and 629 under evacuation alert to leave their homes at short notice.
Ma also declared a state of emergency for the Stikine Region in the province’s northwest, effective immediately, to allow wildfire evacuations in the unincorporated region.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 10, 2023.
