First British Columbia wildfire of 2016 discovered burning west of Quesnel

QUESNEL, B.C. – Crews are battling British Columbia’s first significant wildfire of the year.

The BC Wildfire Service says a fire has been discovered about 90 kilometres west of Quesnel.

The blaze is about 1,000 hectares in size.

The Wildfire Service says firefighters and heavy equipment are on site and more resources are en route.

Fire information officer Ryan Turcot says this is the first large fire crews have faced in 2016.

Nearly 3,000 square kilometres of B.C. woodland burned during the 2015 fire season, costing the province almost $300 million.