Early in the wildfire season, northeastern B.C. a key problem area

The BC Wildfire Service says the number of wildfires so far this year is well above average in one portion of the province.

Superintendent of Predictive Services Neal McLoughlin says although 141 total fires is fairly normal for this time of year, the northeast corner of B.C. is in a concerning state.

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“We are seeing a little bit anomalous area burn for this time of year, we’re about four times the 20-year average. However, 85 per cent of that area is [the] result of three fires,” he said.

McLoughlin says, with no leaves on the trees and vegetation on the forest surface “cured” after the recent snow melt, it’s very easy to spark fires in that corner of the province.

“We’re in the boreal region, and it’s characterized by coniferous fuel types that are actually quite volatile, and so it’s very easy … to start a fire.”

“With windy conditions, they’ll spread quite quickly,” he said.

McLoughlin says the BC Wildfire Service is paying close attention to the area and is currently moving resources there.

“I really encourage the public to pay attention to our public media channels and bcwildfire.ca. If there is a prohibition that comes into place, pay attention to what that entails in terms of your activity in the landscape and how you can prevent wildfire,” he said.

Most fires this time of year are human-caused according to McLoughlin. He says the BC Wildfire Service plans to add supplementary fire restrictions to help combat further burns.