Hot start to wildfire season doesn’t necessarily lead to a bad season
Posted June 6, 2016 5:05 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – BC’s wildfire season is off to a blazing start, but a big start may not lead to an above average year.
There are 36 fires burning in BC right now with six that started over the weekend due to high temperatures, wind, and low humidity.
“We’re looking at about twice what we experienced last year at this time, so it has been a very early and active start to the fire season,” says Claire Allen with the BC Wildfire Service.
From April 1st, we’ve had 332 fires in BC scorching 92,153 hectares. Last year we had 400 fires but only 45,000 hectares burned to this point.Much of it is because of a fiery start in the Peace River region.
“An early and active start isn’t the best indication of what’s to come. The June rains really help determine what kind of fire season we will experience.”
Allens says season predictions won’t be made until a few weeks when the rainfall will combine with the melting snowpack.
“We’re hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.”
The BC Wildfire Service has 1,200 trained firefighters and support staff ready to tackle wildfires this year.
