Campfire ban lifted in Thompson-Okanagan region

Now that fall is here and the weather is changing, BC Wildfire Service has lifted the campfire ban in the Kamloops Fire Centre.

As of 12 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 28, you'll be about to have a campfire in the region thanks to lower temperatures and higher relative humidities.

Category 2 and Category 3 open fires will remain prohibited until noon on Oct. 13 or until the orders are rescinded.

Other high risk activities and equipment such as fireworks, sky lanterns, binary exploding targets, air curtain burners and burn barrels or burn cages (except when used for a Category 1 campfire as defined by the Wildfire Regulation) are also restricted.

The prohibitions applies to all public and private land within the Kamloops Fire Centre jurisdiction, unless it is specified otherwise by a local government bylaw.

The fire centre borders run from Blue River in the north to the U.S. border in the south, and from Bridge River in the west to Monashee Mountains in the east, including the Okanagan and the Lytton and Lillooet area.

Failure to meet restrictions comes with a heavy penalty.

Anyone found in contravention of an open burning prohibition may be issued a ticket for $1,150. They will also be required to pay an administrative penalty of up to $10,000 or, if they are convicted in court, they will be fined up to $100,000 and/or sentenced to one year in jail. If a failure to comply with the restrictions causes or contributes to a wildfire, the person responsible may be ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs.

To learn more about the different categories of open burning, visit the open burning web page here.

To report a wildfire, or open burning violation, call 1-800-663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cell phone.

For information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions, road closures and air quality advisories, call 1-888-3-FOREST or visit the BC Wildfire website here.

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