Thirty-eight abandoned campfires in our fire region on the BC Day long weekend is totally unacceptable, to put it nicely. Actually, it’s criminal, and our first reaction was to immediately jail the perpetrators for such wanton disregard for life and property.
It’s unbelievable that anyone would walk away from a campfire knowing the devastation it could cause.
We have all seen what fire has done to many communities in BC and beyond; homes destroyed, lives uprooted, millions in property damage. Yet ignorant and stupid people continue to put our lives at risk.
There is no excuse whatsoever for leaving a campfire unattended or abandoned, unless you have a grizzly bear breathing down your neck.
Imagine what an abandoned campfire could do in rural Oliver; we shudder at the thought, and totally back the Oliver Fire Department for implementing a campfire ban in their service area.
There is an alarming number of human-caused fires in BC, and we think the provincial government has to implement tougher penalties for this carelessness.
Human-caused fires take much needed resources away from the BC Wildfire Service that has to contend with lightning-caused fires.
It’s too bad we couldn’t sentence these careless individuals to a wildfire training course and put them on the front line during a real fire. They wouldn’t abandon a campfire again.
Often people decide to burn rubbish or yard waste on their property and never think their small fire will burn out of control . . . until it’s too late. They start to panic and scramble to extinguish it, but the wind picks up and their garden hose is useless. Soon, the whole neighbourhood is on fire; that’s how fast it can happen.
Oliver was extremely fortunate last summer that the wildfires didn’t destroy more homes and property.
The following tips come from the FireSmart program. Remember, if you wait, it may be too late.
– Regularly clean your roof, gutters, etc. of debris.
– Keep woodpiles, propane tanks and combustibles at least 10 metres from your home.
– Regularly mow your lawn, and remove deadfall, coniferous trees and other flammable vegetation.
– Space trees at least three metres apart, and prune all branches within two metres of the ground.
– Regularly clean up fallen branches, dry grass and needles from the ground, and keep your deck clear of this debris.
If you’re going to plant new trees, consider planting deciduous species such as aspen, poplar and birch because they have lower flammability rates.
Please, don’t be the cause of the next wildfire. The well-being of your community is in your hands.
