Effective at noon on Friday, July 24 and until further notice, all campfires are prohibited throughout the Southeast Fire Centre. This campfire ban is in addition to the existing restriction on Category 1, including fireworks and burning barrels, Category 2 and Category 3 open fires.

This campfire ban is in effect to protect public safety and to limit the risk of human-caused wildfires. It does not prohibit fires in stoves using gas, propane, or briquettes. This restriction does apply to open flame campfire apparatus (i.e. propane campfires, etc.).

This open fire restriction applies within BC Parks and to all public and private land outside of organized areas. This fire ban does not apply within municipalities or regional districts that have their own burning bylaws. Provincial Park campgrounds remain open for all other activities.

Please be aware that the City of Cranbrook has its own burning bylaw and is not issuing a ban on campfires within the city limits at this time.

Fire Wardens responded to 22 abandoned campfires this weekend, an alarming increase over the previous weekend. The number of human-caused fires remains unacceptably high, totalling 55 per cent of all fires in the Southeast this season.

The Southeast Fire Centre encompasses the area extending from the US Border in the south to Mica Dam in the north and from the Okanagan Highlands or Monashee Mountains in the west to the B.C./Alberta Border in the east. This includes all of the Arrow-Boundary, Kootenay Lake, Rocky Mountain and Columbia Forest Districts (see attached map).

To report a wildfire or unattended campfire call 1-800-663-5555 or *5555 on most cellular networks. For more information on open fire restrictions or for updates on current wildfire activity, please visit www.bcwildfire.ca.