The Wildfire Management Branch is sending another 43 personnel to the Yukon to help with fire suppression efforts.

One Unit Crew from the Cariboo Fire Centre, one 12-person Incident Management Team and 11 other staff will be leaving on Wednesday, July 17. A total of 145 Wildfire Management Branch staff have now been deployed to the Yukon.

The request for assistance was made through the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, which co-ordinates the mutual sharing of firefighting resources between B.C. and other jurisdictions.

The Wildfire Management Branch always maintains adequate firefighting capacity to respond to current conditions in B.C. Deployed personnel can be recalled at any time.

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

Quick Facts:

• Unit Crew: This 20-person crew is typically deployed to larger fires. It establishes pump and hose lines, digs fireguards and removes fuel from a wildfire's path using back burns.

• Incident Management Team: When a wildfire burns for an extended period or when a complex fire occurs, an Incident Management Team is called in to assume overall management of the fire.

Learn More:

For the latest information on fire activity, conditions and prohibitions in B.C., visit: 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

Media Contact:

Navi Saini
Fire Information Officer
Wildfire Management Branch
250 312-3051