Spark up a campfire again on parts of Northern Vancouver Island as bans eased

VANCOUVER – Weekend downpours haven’t done much to wash away a withering drought across southern B.C., but the recent wet weather is good news for campers on northern Vancouver Island.

The B.C. Wildfire Service says, effective at noon on Tuesday, campfires are once again allowed in the North Island-Central Coast Natural Resource District within the Coastal Fire Centre.

It means campfires are permitted on Vancouver Island north of Robson Bight, in the Nimpkish Valley and north of Nordstrom Creek on the Brooks Peninsula along the northwestern coast.

Half-metre by half-metre campfires are also allowed on the mainland north of Knight Inlet to Princess Royal Island.

Earlier this month, damp conditions prompted the wildfire service to once again allow campfires in the Northwest and Prince George fire centres, as well as Haida Gwaii and the area known as the “Fog Zone” along the western edge of Vancouver Island.

Open burning remains banned across British Columbia and campfires are still restricted in other parts of the Coastal Fire Centre, as well as the Kamloops and Southeast centres.