British Columbia's Wildfire Management Branch is sending 210 personnel to Quebec and Ontario to aid those provinces with the fire activity they are experiencing.

Five 20-person unit crews, five division supervisors and three agency representatives will be leaving for Quebec, while four unit crews, three agency representatives and one incident management team will be heading to Ontario. The personnel will be departing May 24 from Kamloops and Prince George.

The provinces of Quebec and Ontario made the requests through the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, which co-ordinates the mutual sharing of resources between B.C. and other jurisdictions.

Crews can be deployed for up to 14 days, but can be recalled at any time should the situation in B.C. change. Sufficient firefighting personnel and resources remain in B.C. at all times.

Costs associated with the deployment will be covered by the receiving jurisdictions under the Mutual Aid Resources Sharing Agreement, which allows for the movement of firefighting resources throughout Canada.

This is the second out-of-province deployment this year. Initial attack crews, which were deployed to Manitoba on May 15, are returning to B.C. today.

Quotes:

Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations Steve Thomson -

"B.C.'s firefighting crews are among world's best and often provide assistance in Canada and internationally. When we can make our crews available to other jurisdictions to assist with firefighting efforts, we are proud to do so."

Quick Facts:

• Unit crew: These firefighters are typically deployed to larger fires. The 20-person unit establishes pump and hose lines, digs fire guards and removes fuel from a wildfire's path using back burns.
• Agency representative: Acts as the link between the deployed crews and the Wildfire Management Branch.
• Division supervisor: Supervises crews and equipment on the fireline.
• Incident Management Team: When wildfires burn for extended periods or when complex fires occur, incident management teams are called in to assume their overall management.

Learn More:

For the latest information on fire activity, conditions and prohibitions in B.C., visit the Wildfire Management Branch website at: www.bcwildfire.ca

You can also follow the latest B.C. wildfire news:

On Twitter at: http://twitter.com/BCGovFireInfo

On Facebook at: http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo

Contact:

Fionna Tollovsen
Fire Information Officer - Provincial
Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations
250 312-3051