With rising temperatures and drier weather, the B.C. Wildfire Service will implement a fire ban in Nanaimo beginning today (Aug. 17) at noon.
According to the province, campfires, open fires on an outdoor stove, tiki torches, fireworks and firecrackers, sky lanterns, burning barrels or burning cages and rifle target practice are all prohibited and this applies to all B.C. parks, Crown lands and private lands in the Nanaimo area.
Haida Gwaii and the fog zone on the west coast of the Island are not included in the ban.
“These prohibitions do not apply to [Canadian Standards Association]-rated or [Underwriters' Laboratories of Canada]-rated cooking stoves that use gas, propane or briquettes, or to a portable campfire apparatus that uses briquettes, liquid or gaseous fuel, so long as the height of the flame is less than 15 centimetres,” said the province in a press release.
Like the province, the City of Nanaimo is also issuing a burning ban at noon on Aug. 17, with the same prohibitions and exceptions as the province.
The Regional District of Nanaimo does not allow fires in any of its parks, save for campsites, but a fire ban has been in place at Descanso Bay Regional Park campground since June, said Wendy Marshall, manager of parks services.
For more information, please call the B.C. Wildfire Service at 250-951-4229, the city at 250-756-5200 or the regional district at 1-888-828-2069.