PARKSVILLE - Effective at noon on Tuesday, July 14, 2015, campfires will once again be permitted in Haida Gwaii and the area known as the “Fog Zone” within the Coastal Fire Centre’s jurisdiction.

The Coastal Fire Centre is lifting the campfire prohibition in these two areas only, due to the amount of precipitation recently received there and prevailing marine climate conditions, particularly in the “Fog Zone”.

A map of the affected areas is available online at: http://bit.ly/1Ob1XSb

The Fog Zone is a two-kilometre-wide strip along the outer coast of Vancouver Island, stretching from Owen Point (near Port Renfrew) north to the tip of Vancouver Island and around to the boundary of the District of Port Hardy. This strip extends inland two kilometres from the high tide point. A map of the Fog Zone is available online at: http://bit.ly/1GMvwnU

All other types of open fires remain prohibited throughout the Coastal Fire Centre’s jurisdiction, including backyard burning and land-clearing burn piles. Burning barrels, burning cages, fireworks, firecrackers, sky lanterns and binary exploding targets are also prohibited. For more information on the differences between campfires, Category 2 fires and Category 3 fires, please visit: http://bit.ly/1GlhE9l

The partial rescinding of the campfire prohibition applies to all BC Parks, Crown lands and private lands, but does not apply within the boundaries of a local government that has forest fire prevention bylaws and is serviced by a fire department.

People lighting a campfire must maintain a fireguard by removing flammable debris from the campfire area and they must have a hand tool or at least eight litres of water available nearby to properly extinguish the fire. They must fully extinguish the campfire and the ashes must be cold to the touch before they leave the campfire site for any length of time.

If a campfire escapes and it’s determined that it caused a wildfire, the person(s) responsible may be liable for fire suppression costs and damages.

The Coastal Fire Centre covers all of the area west of the height of land on the Coast Mountain Range from the U.S.-Canada border at Manning Park, including Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park in the north, the Sunshine Coast, the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and Haida Gwaii.

To report a wildfire or unattended campfire, call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cellphone.

For the latest information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions, road closures and air quality advisories, visit: http://www.bcwildfire.ca

You can also follow the latest wildfire news:

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

Media Contacts:

Donna MacPherson or Marg Drysdale
Fire Information Officers
BC Wildfire Service
Coastal Fire Centre
250 951-4209
FORHPRP.INFOCO@gov.bc.ca