Kamloops Fire Centre 2014.07.11

T he Fire Danger Rating Class numbers are on the rise and so is the risk of wildfires. This

newsletter is filled with valuable information about the current Fire Danger Class numbers and links to help you determine shutdown times if you are conducting any high-risk activities.

We are reaching out once again this week because a spike in fire activity is expected this weekend. The possibility of dry lightning is in the forecast for Sunday and, when combined with the climbing indices, there is the potential for an in-crease in fire starts and more ag-

gressive fire behaviour.

Already this year, other areas of the province are experiencing ex-treme fire activity in the subsident zones and at mid-level elevations. The Prince George Fire Centre is battling a 4,500-hectare wildfire southeast of Tumbler Ridge and an-other fire 125 kilometres west of Quesnel that is estimated at 334 hectares.

These fires are causing smoky skies throughout the Interior and Okanagan. However it’s only a matter of time before we also expe-rience larger fires in southern B.C.

This is a reminder to please en-sure that you are complying with the Wildfire Regulation and Wildfire Act. If you start a wildfire and have the ability to suppress it, please do so quickly and report it to

1 800 663-5555 or *5555 on your cellular phone

For the latest information on fire activity, bans, restrictions and cur-rent conditions, visit the Wildfire Management Branch website at www.bcwildfire.ca

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BCForestfireInfo

Fire

Zone

# of

Fires

# of

Hectares

Clearwater 2 23

Kamloops 30 64

Salmon Arm 16 4

Vernon 15 6

Penticton 24 230

Merritt 23 13

Lillooet 14 21

The Red Deer Creek Fire in the Prince George Fire Centre is creating a lot of smoke.

P A G E 2

Kamloops Fire Centre Restrictions

Open fire prohibition set for Kamloops Fire Centre

KAMLOOPS – Effective at noon on Sunday, June

15, 2014, an open burning ban was expanded

throughout the entire Kamloops Fire Centre to

include the Salmon Arm Fire Zone and Clearwa-

ter Fire Zone. This is to help prevent human-

caused wildfires and protect the public.

This prohibition will remain in place in the Clear-

water Fire Zone and Salmon Arm Fire Zone for

elevations above 1,200 metres until Sept. 15,

2014. For all other elevations in those zones,

this prohibition will remain in place until Oct. 1,

2014.

This prohibition will remain in place in the Kam-

loops, Vernon, Penticton, Merritt and Lillooet

fire zones until Oct. 15, 2014, or until the public

is informed otherwise.

A map of the affected areas is available online

at: http://bit.ly/1mkOXtb

Specifically, this open fire prohibition applies to:

- The burning of any waste, slash or other mate-

rials.

- The burning of stubble or grass.

- The use of fireworks, sky lanterns or burning

barrels of any size or description.

This prohibition does not ban campfires that are

a half-metre high by a half-metre wide (or small-

er) and does not apply to cooking stoves that

use gas, propane or briquettes.

This prohibition covers all BC Parks, Crown lands

and private lands, but it does not apply within

the boundaries of a local government that has

forest fire prevention bylaws in place and is ser-

viced by a fire department. Before lighting any

fire, residents should check with local civic au-

thorities regarding any current prohibitions.

The Kamloops Fire Centre stretches from the

northern border of Wells Gray Park to the U.S.

border to the south, and from the Bridge River

Glacier west of Gold Bridge to the Monashee

Mountains east of Lumby.

For information about open burning and tips on

making responsible burning decisions, please

download one of the open burning guides at:

http://bcwildfire.ca/hprScripts/WildfireNews/

Bans.asp

Anyone found in contravention of an open fire

prohibition may be issued a ticket for $345 or, if

convicted in court, may be fined up to $100,000

and sentenced to one year in jail. If the contra-

vention causes or contributes to a wildfire, the

person may be subject to a penalty of up to

$10,000 and be ordered to pay all firefighting

and associated costs.

To report a wildfire or unattended campfire, call

*5555 on your cellphone or

call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free.

P A G E 3

Precipitation

Temperature Relative Humidity

These maps are for informational purposes only and should not be used to make operational decisions.

Fire Danger Rating

These maps are current for July 11, 2014.

For the most recent weather maps, please visit www.bcwildfire.ca/weather

P A G E 4

Most recent forecast for KFC Valid as of 9:30 a.m. on Friday, July 11, 2014

SYNOPSIS: An upper ridge over the region will continue to bring sunny skies and above-normal temperatures today and tomorrow with a dry and stable air mass. Patchy subtropical moisture may arrive Saturday afternoon or even-ing and bring a thunderstorm to sections of the Merritt Fire Zone. TODAY: Subsident Zone, North Thompson and Monashees: Sunny. Winds becoming northwest 20 km/h this afternoon. High temperatures 32 to 36 with up to 38 in the Fraser Canyon. Relative humidity values falling to 10 to 25 per cent. TONIGHT: Subsident Zone, North Thompson and Monashees: Clear. Winds becoming light and variable overnight. Low temperatures 12 to 16 and relative humidity recoveries to 50 to 65 per cent. TOMORROW: Subsident Zone and Monashees: Sunny. Slight chance of a late afternoon or evening thunderstorm with dry lightning in Merritt Fire Zone. Winds variable 10 to 20 km/h. High temperatures 34 to 38 and relative humidity values fall-ing to 10 to 25 per cent. 3 TO 5-DAY OUTLOOK: Sunday will begin sunny, but an upper disturbance arriving late in the day will bring increased instability with patchy subtropical moisture. This may cause thunderstorms in southern sections of the forecast region, with other areas remaining sunny. Dry lightning will be possible. Tem-peratures will again reach into the mid to upper 30s and winds will be north-west 10 to 20 km/h. The disturbance tracks across Washington State on Mon-day, along or just south of the international boundary, increasing the chance of thunderstorms in southern sections. Temperatures will continue in the mid to upper 30s and winds will be westerly 20 to 30 km/h. The upper ridge holds on Tuesday with hot and dry conditions, although it is flattened somewhat by an upper low tracking across the Arctic. Temperatures will be in the mid to high 30s with winds westerly 20 to 30 km/h. 6 TO 10-DAY OUTLOOK: Upper ridge continuing to weaken, leading to cooler and more unsettled conditions. CONFIDENCE: Fair. Increasing instability through the weekend with possible subtropical moisture makes thunderstorms more likely. The most likely tim-ing is Sunday night through Monday night with southern sections of the fore-cast region most vulnerable. Daytime heating will also play a part in the in-creasing instability.

Kamloops Fire

Centre Statistics

Since April 1, 2014:

Fires to date: 124

Hectares burned: 361

Person-caused fires: 89

Lightning-caused fires: 35

2009 at this time:

Fires to date: 2302

Hectares burned: 9,004

Person-caused fires: 164

Lightning-caused fires: 137

2003 at this time:

Fires to date: 166

Hectares burned: 212

Person-caused fires: 114

Lightning-caused fires: 52

P A G E 5

Industry Information Bulletin

Drying trend increases risks in Kamloops Fire Centre

KAMLOOPS – The weather in the Kamloops Fire Cen-tre will remain hot and dry for the next seven to 10 days. This increases the potential for wildfires to ignite in a region that’s already seeing high temperatures and little precipitation.

Due to these conditions, several areas of the Kam-loops Fire Centre are experiencing an “extreme” fire danger rating, with the remainder of the region rated as “moderate” to “high”.

So far this year in the Kamloops Fire Centre, the Wildfire Management Branch has responded to 123 wildfires that have burned over 349 hectares. There are currently over 295 personnel fighting wildfires in the province and 60 of them are working on the 14 active fires in the Kamloops Fire Centre.

Current open fire prohibitions for the Kamloops Fire Centre can be viewed online at http://bcwildfire.ca/hprScripts/WildfireNews/Bans.asp Updates on any bans and restrictions will be posted on this site throughout the summer.

Since the rest of the province is experiencing similar weather conditions, these fires serve as reminders to everyone to be extremely cautious and vigilant when carrying out industrial activities. Industry personnel need to pay particular attention to the Fire Danger Class rating for their operating area, available at http://bcwildfire.ca/hprScripts/DgrCls/index.asp?Region=5

They should also ensure that they use the appropri-ate weather station data for the area where they are operating and adhere to the shutdown formulas out-lined in the Restrictions on High Risk Activities, available online at http://bcwildfire.ca/Industry_Stakeholders/industry/HighRiskActivities.htm

Remember that if you see or cause a wildfire, you have an obligation to report it, take action with availa-ble resources and extinguish it if it’s practicable to do so. Please ensure that you carry out industrial opera-tions in accordance with the Wildfire Act and Wildfire Regulation.

The Wildfire Management Branch appreciates the continued efforts and co-operation of the forest indus-try and other stakeholders regarding fire prevention and reporting.

This bulletin in provided for general information only and is not to be used for operational planning or to make operational decisions. More information about wildfires in B.C. is available at www.bcwildfire.ca

To report a wildfire, call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on your cellphone.

Media Contact:

Melissa Klassen Fire Information Officer Wildfire Management Branch Kamloops Fire Centre 250 554-5530

P A G E 6

Fuel Moisture Codes

Want more information? Visit the websites at bcwildfire.ca

Report a Wildfire *5555 on a cell or 1 800 663-5555

Wildfire Information Line 1 888 3FOREST

Burn Registration Line 1 888 797-1717

Kamloops Fire Centre 1 250 554-5965

Media and Public Line

Important Numbers

W eather information is used to de-

velop codes to indicate how dry

the different classes of fuels are

in the forest. From this information, prepared-

ness levels are set on a daily basis.

The FFMC (Fine Fuel Moisture Code) is a

code that measures the dryness of fine fuels

(grasses, needles, etc.). A number of 85 or

higher indicates a good chance of a fire start

from an ignition source. Once 90 or higher is

reached, all the fine fuels are available to burn.

The DMC (Duff Moisture Code) measures

about 10 cm into the ground and is an indica-

tion of whether a fire that starts will continue

to burn in the duff. A number of 40 or greater

would indicate that a fire will continue to burn.

The DC is the Drought Code, measuring

deeper in the ground. A number of 300 or

greater indicates that the fire will burn deep

into the ground, providing challenges to mop it

up.

The Danger Class is the typical Fire Danger

Rating that is seen on fire signage, where 1

and 2 represent Low, 3 is Moderate, 4 is High

and 5 is Extreme. A map of the current Fire

Danger Ratings is on Page 3.

* If you have any questions about which

weather station you should be monitoring,

please contact your company forester or local

fire zone for information.

A tree catches on fire during a test fire lit by Wild-

fire Management Branch personnel for a fire inves-

tigation course near Merritt.

P A G E 7

Kamloops Fire Centre Indices July 11, 2014