Prince George, BC – The Prince George Fire Centre has already recorded 16 forest fires since the start of April – double the number in the same period last year.

Fire Information Officer, Jillian Chimko, says, "Last year was a record low fire season though, so we do expect to be a bit busier this year." 

Chimko notes that all fires in the region to date have been human caused. The BC Wildfire Branch is urging residents to use extreme caution when using outdoor burns as part of their ‘spring clean up’. Chimko says escaped grass fires are the most common form of human-caused wildfires at this time of year.

"Our largest one (in the Prince George Fire Centre) was about 53-hectares and some of (the 16) are still in the process of being dealt with," says the fire information officer.  "At this moment, we have no fires of concern, but a few of them are still in the mop up/patrol stage."

The fire centre will be up to its full staffing complement by Monday, which includes:

• 31 initial attack crews (three person crews that are normally the first teams sent to a fire)
• four unit crews (20 person crews) – this is an increase from the centre’s three unit crews last year

In BC, the Wildfire Act specifies a person’s legal obligations when using fire on, or within, one-kilometre of forest land or grassland.  Chimko says if an outdoor burn escapes and causes a wildfire, the person responsible may be held accountable for damages and fire suppression costs.  Anyone planning a grass burn over 0.2 hectares must call 1-888-797-1717 and obtain a burn registration number ahead of time.  More information is available by clicking here.