File photo (Image credit: CFJC Today).

By Aaron Schulze

Campfires Out, Again

Campfire prohibition reinstated for Cariboo Fire Centre Friday

Jul 6, 2023 | 5:06 AM

WILLIAMS LAKE, B.C. — Campfires will be temporarily banned in the Cariboo Fire Centre (CFC), again.

In a news release, the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) says the campfire prohibition for the CFC and the Tsilhqot’in (Xeni Gwet’in) Declared Title Area comes into effect as of noon Friday (July 7). The BCWS says it’s to help prevent human-caused wildfires.

In addition to campfires, the prohibition also covers:

• Fireworks
• Sky Lanterns
• Burn Barrels or Burn Cages of any size or description
• Binary Exploding Targets
• Air curtain burners
• Tiki and similar kind of torches
• Chimineas

The CFC’s first campfire ban this season took effect on June 8 but was rescinded on June 16 after the region experienced cooler, wet days.

One Man's Opinion

COLLINS: North Shore BIA working hard to develop a 'happening place'

3h ago

1000 Ways to Heal

1000 Ways to Heal: Moons

Dec 10, 2024

Question of the Week

Should Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson apologize or resign after it was found he breached a section of council's code of conduct for allowing false or misleading information to be communicated?

Dec 09, 2024

The CFC stretches from Loon Lake near Clinton in the south to the Cottonwood River near Quesnel in the north, and from Tweedsmuir Provincial Park in the west to Wells Gray Provincial Park in the east.

Anyone found in contravention of an open-burning prohibition may be issued a violation ticket for $1,150, and may be required to pay an administrative penalty of up to $10,000 or, if convicted in court, fined up to $100,000 and/or sentenced to one year in jail. If the contravention causes or contributes to a wildfire, the person responsible may be ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs.

Anyone can report a wildfire, unattended campfire, or open burning violation by calling 1 (800) 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cell phone.

As of noon Wednesday, the BC Wildfire Service lists the fire danger rating in most of the CFC as “moderate” and “high” with some stretches of “extreme.”

Image credit: BC Wildfire Service