Campfires are once again allowed east of the Fraser River within the Cariboo Fire Centre’s jurisdiction.
The Cariboo Fire Centre made the announcement Monday in a media release and say campfires remain prohibited west of the Fraser River.
Specifically, the following activities will be allowed east of the Fraser River but remain prohibited west of the Fraser River:
* Campfires (no larger than 0.5 meters high by 0.5 meters wide).
* Outdoor stoves and other portable campfire apparatuses.
* Tiki torches, burning barrels, burning cages and air curtain burners.
Category 2 open burning, Category 3 open burning, fireworks, firecrackers, sky lanterns, and binary exploding targets will remain prohibited throughout the entire Cariboo Fire Centre to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety.
Anyone lighting a campfire east of the Fraser River must maintain a fireguard by removing flammable debris from around the campfire site and have a hand tool or at least eight liters of water available nearby to properly extinguish the fire.
The person must make sure that the campfire is completely out and the ashes are cold to the touch before leaving the area for any length of time.
Campfire prohibitions do not apply to cooking stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes, or to a portable campfire apparatus with a CSA or ULC rating that uses briquettes, liquid or gaseous fuel, so long as the height of the flame is less than 15 centimeters.
These prohibitions cover all BC Parks, Crown lands and private lands, but do not apply within the boundaries of a local municipality that has forest fire prevention bylaws and is serviced by a fire department.
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.
For a map of the affected areas, please visit: http://bit.ly/1ICuTnm
The fire danger rating in the Cariboo Fire Centre currently ranges from “very low” to “low” east of the Fraser River and “low” to “extreme” west of the Fraser River.
In areas with a “high” or “extreme” fire danger rating, there is a serious wildfire risk.