Category 2 open fires will be prohibited across the entire Cariboo Fire Centre region beginning Thursday, May 11 at noon.
This prohibition includes the Cariboo Chilcotin Forest District, the 100 Mile House Forest District, the Quesnel Forest District and the Tsilhqot’in (Xeni Gwet’in) Declared Title Area to prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety.
The following activities and use of the following equipment, materials and substances will be prohibited: fireworks, sky lanterns, burn barrels or burn cages of any size or description, binary exploding targets and air curtain burners.
Anyone conducting a Category 2 open fire anywhere in Cariboo Region must extinguish any such fire noon Thursday.
Until the order is rescinded it will remain in place until Oct. 27, 2023.
Category 3 fires have been prohibited throughout the Cariboo Fire Centre since May 4, 2023 and prohibited on the Tsilhqot’in (Xeni Gwet’in) Declared Title Area since May 8, 2023.
This prohibition does not ban campfires that are a half-metre high by a half-metre wide or smaller, and does not apply to cooking stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes.
The Category 2 open fire 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 in place and is serviced by a fire department. Check with local government authorities for any other restrictions before lighting any fire.
The Cariboo Fire Centre stretches from Loon Lake near Clinton in the south to the Cottonwood River near Quesnel in the north, and from Tweedsmuir Provincial Park in the west to Wells Gray Provincial Park in the east.
Human-caused wildfires are completely preventable and divert critical resources away from lightning-caused fires. Always practice safe, responsible fire use where permitted.
To report a wildfire, unattended campfire or open burning violation, call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cell phone.
Check with your local government or other jurisdictional authorities before lighting a fire of any size since they may have their own restrictions in place.
Anyone found in contravention of an open-burning prohibition may be issued a violation ticket for $1,150, may be required to pay an administrative penalty of up to $10,000 or, if convicted in court, may be fined up to $100,000 and/or sentenced to one year in jail. If the contravention causes or contributes to a wildfire, the person responsible may be ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs.
READ MORE: Cariboo area firefighters, residents respond to grass fires, two structure fires April 26-29
READ MORE: Crews target South Cariboo fires as hot, dry weather heats up fire season
monica.lamb-yorski@wltribune.com
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