A band of lightning that moved through the Northwest Fire Centre the afternoon of Wednesday, June 26, started several new wildfires in the region.

Campfires, as well as Category 2 and 3 open burning, will again be allowed throughout the Northwest Fire Centre’s jurisdiction beginning at noon on Friday, June 7, 2019.

The BC Wildfire Service is responding to several wildfires within the Cassiar Fire Zone of the Northwest Fire Centre and is preparing for potential new wildfire activity in the region, due to higher-than-normal temperatures and drought conditions.

Effective noon (Pacific time) on Friday, May 24, 2019, burning prohibitions will be in effect throughout the Northwest Fire Centre’s jurisdiction to reduce wildfire risks and protect public safety.

Effective at noon on Friday, May 17, 2019, Category 2 open burning will once again be allowed throughout the Northwest Fire Centre’s jurisdiction.

The BC Wildfire Service plans to conduct a 39-hectare prescribed burn in the Date Creek area, about 26 kilometres northwest of the Village of Kispiox, to prepare the site for replanting and help reduce wildfire risks.

Due to increasing temperatures in parts of the Northwest Fire Centre, the BC Wildfire Service will implement a Category 2 open fire prohibition within the Nadina, Bulkley and Skeena fire zones of the Northwest Fire Centre.

The BC Wildfire Service, in collaboration with BC Parks, will be burning piles of wood debris in Call Lake Provincial Park between April 15 and May 31, 2019, as part of a multi-year FireSmart project to reduce wildfire risks in the area.

The Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako and the Tahltan First Nation are being awarded more than $219,000 for three projects under the special circumstance provision of the BC Rural Dividend.

Given the recent mild and dry weather conditions in the Northwest Fire Centre, the BC Wildfire Service encourages members of the public and industry personnel to exercise caution when doing any outdoor burning.