Fire season has returned.
In fact, the annual fire fight is already well underway, with active burns throughout two-thirds of the province.
The hardest hit areas right now are within the Prince George Fire Zone, especially within the vicinity of Fort St. John and Dawson Creek,where there are currently more than 30 individual wildfires.
Evacuation orders were in effect Monday for communities near Fort St. John, and a state of emergency was declared by the Peace River Regional District.
Despite the unseasonably high temperatures throughout the province, officials with the Prince George Fire Zone believe 12 of the most recently reported fires to be human caused, sparked by grass or pile burns.
On Monday, April 18, the Northwest Fire Zone reported six new fires totaling 30 hectares near Burns Lake. These too are known to be human caused.
In fact, the majority of the 59 fires BC Wildfire crews have responded to since April 1 have been human caused, prompting B.C. Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations Minister Steve Thomson to urge British Columbians to essentially smarten up.
“Fire prevention is a shared responsibility of the B.C. government, local governments, industry, stakeholders and individuals. Wildfires caused by people unnecessarily divert firefighting crews and resources from naturally occurring fires,” says Thomson in a news release.
New fines came into effect at the beginning of April for a variety of wildfire-related violations, with penalties up to three times higher. For example, the fine for those caught not complying with a fire restriction under the Wildfire Act has tripled from $345 to $1,150, while the fine for anyone failing to properly extinguish a burning substance, such as a cigarette, is now $575.
Of course, these fines are paltry compared to the nightmare a wildfire can unleash upon a community.