With no relief in sight in the weather forecast, B.C.’s wildfire emergency is expected to continue over the next few weeks. To ensure that adequate resources are available to continue in the fight, more international personnel are on the way.

Over the next week, more than 400 firefighting staff from New Zealand, Australia, Mexico and the United States will join the over 3,800 personnel currently working throughout the province to respond to the ongoing wildfire situation in B.C.

This will be a mix of specialized support staff, including incident management teams, and highly trained and experienced wildland firefighting crews. They will join over 3,150 personnel from British Columbia (including more than 1,450 B.C. contract personnel) as well as over 630 other out-of-province personnel who have been working tirelessly to protect the province’s communities and infrastructure.

These firefighters are trained to the standards of the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. The cost of bringing in the international personnel will be covered by the Province of B.C.

Hot and dry weather conditions have kept a persistently high-to-extreme fire danger rating throughout  B.C. Firefighting crews are on standby in all six of B.C.’s fire centres in preparation for an anticipated increase in fire starts over the next few days due to unsettled weather in the forecast that may bring lightning.

Quote:

Doug Donaldson, Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development –

“Given the unprecedented nature of the B.C. wildfires, we appreciate the assistance our international partners are able to provide.”

Learn More:

To report a new wildfire or an open burning violation, please call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cellphone.

For up-to-date information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions, road closures and air quality advisories, call 1 888 3-FOREST (1 888 336-7378) or visit: http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status

You can follow the latest wildfire news on:

• Twitter at: http://twitter.com/BCGovFireInfo
• Facebook at: http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo