Wildfires light up parts of B.C. just days into spring

Spring has barely begun in B.C., and wildfires are already seemingly an issue in some parts of the province.

The BC Wildfire Service says its crews have already doused a dozen fires in the southern Interior, with the latest happening Wednesday near Merritt.

CityNews Meteorologist Michael Kuss says that despite the date on the calendar, he’s not surprised blazes are popping up.

“The forest is still relatively dormant. The moisture is not there in the coniferous trees, and of course, the deciduous trees are bare. The grass is dry where the snow has already melted,” he explained.

Wednesday’s fire grew up to seven hectares before being knocked down by firefighters, according to the BC Wildfire Service.

“There’s no … moisture in the vegetation, so if a fire takes place, it spreads relatively rapidly,” Kuss explained, adding that as we start to see trees budding and blooming, and the foliage taking place, everything will become wetter, especially as we head into the wetter part of the year.

But Kuss notes to see fires this early in the year isn’t necessarily an indication of the fire activity we’ll see come summer.

“It’s always dry in the spring as the meltdown takes place. There is no moisture in that vegetation,” he said.

–With files from The Canadian Press and Dean Recksiedler