A BC Wildfire Service crew member spray water on the fire at Kenna Cartwright Park on May 24. (Image Credit: Curtis Goodrum/CFJC Today)

By Victor Kaisar

Grassfire

City, Fire Chief urge caution as grassfire in Kenna Cartwright Park under control

May 25, 2025 | 9:47 AM

KAMLOOPS — A grassfire that sparked near the Reservoir Trail at Kenna Cartwright Park Saturday (May 24) is currently under control, though it hadn’t yet been extinguished as of the most recent update.

Kamloops Fire Chief Ken Uzeloc told CFJC Today that while the fire was “well-contained within its perimeter,” a crew remained on scene to monitor the estimated 1.1 hectare fire overnight.

“Given the terrain in the area, it was too dangerous to have crews operating throughout the night in the dark,” Uzeloc said Saturday night. “A crew in the morning will come up and take over to work to get it fully extinguished.”

“We worked to get the fire knocked down while BC Wildfire did some danger tree falling to remove some of the hazards and the fire load around the area.”

Stay Ahead of the Curve with Kamloops' Trusted Property Manager - Rohit Kumar

May 20, 2025

Question of the Week

Do you believe the G7 summit in Alberta will help forge a smoother relationship between Canada and the U.S.?

22h ago

1000 Ways to Heal

1000 Ways to Heal: NIPD - A Path Toward Healing

Jun 16, 2025

About a dozen firefighters from four Kamloops fire stations responded with engines, tenders, and bush trucks, around 3:30 p.m. Saturday. They were joined by two BC Wildfire Service initial attack crews.

Uzeloc said crews were able to make good progress on the fire once they began to pump water in through a four-inch line from a hydrant near the Home Depot. Prior to that, he said the fire was able to burn as crews were often forced to wait for water to be trucked in.

Both Uzeloc and the City said the fire is a reminder of dry and warming conditions in the area. Environment Canada is forecasting a high of 30 C Sunday (May 25) and 34 C on Wednesday.

“As much as we’ve had rain for a couple of weeks now off and on, we can see that it still doesn’t take much for a fire to start and to spread quickly,” Uzeloc added. “We would ask all Kamloopsians to be fire smart and pay attention to what you’re doing and to be safe.”

While the grassfire has been classified as human caused by the BC Wildfire Service, Uzeloc said investigators will scour the area and look to pinpoint a more definitive cause.