National

Help Make The Labour Day Long Weekend A Safe One

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 02 Sep, 2016 02:01 PM

Summer is gradually coming to a close, but the wildfire risk in some areas of the province remains a concern.

All British Columbians are urged to exercise caution and use common sense over the Labour Day long weekend to help prevent human-caused wildfires.

From April 1, 2016, until noon yesterday, the BC Wildfire Service responded to 988 wildfires provincewide, 466 of which were caused by people.

Over 99,317 hectares have been burned so far this fire season. Human-caused fires are completely preventable and unnecessarily tie up firefighting resources that could be used to deal with naturally occurring wildfires.

Here are some important campfire safety tips:

Campfires cannot be larger than 0.5 metres high by 0.5 metres wide.

Do not light a campfire or keep it burning in windy conditions. Weather can change quickly and the wind may carry embers to other combustible material.

Have a hand tool or at least eight litres of water available nearby to properly extinguish your campfire.

Maintain a fireguard around the campfire. This is a fuel-free area where all flammable materials (grass, kindling, etc.) have been removed.

Never leave a campfire unattended.

Make sure that the campfire is completely extinguished and the ashes are cold to the touch before leaving the area for any length of time.

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