Keen observers who spotted an out-of-control bonfire at Comox Lake helped prevent what could have quickly escalated 鈥渋nto a disaster鈥� over the weekend, noted the Cumberland Fire chief.
Mike Williamson said around 12:15 a.m. on July 9, the fire department received a call for a large beach fire at Coal Beach on Comox Lake. The fire was just breaking into nearby trees when firefighters arrived.
鈥淚t was a small fire right beside the lake. People don鈥檛 realize that it wasn鈥檛 completely out and there was a good westerly wind and it re-lit.鈥�
He said if people didn鈥檛 call in the fire and firefighters didn鈥檛 arrive when they did, the fire could have caused significantly more damage. Six firefighters arrived to combat the blaze and they used a fireboat on Comox Lake with two lines to assist.
Williamson noted it took about 20 minutes to extinguish the fire, but firefighters stayed on the scene for three hours into the night to keep the logs cool to ensure they wouldn鈥檛 re-ignite. They also returned later Sunday morning to ensure the fire was completely extinguished.
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鈥淲e must be more careful in our recreation areas 鈥� we have had a few more calls to Coal Beach. We need everyone to be vigilant and we need the public helping out.鈥�
He encourages anyone who sees smoke to call 911 immediately.
Currently, B.C. is facing a campfire ban which came into effect July 10, and Emergency Minister Bowinn Ma also noted water scarcity in the face of worsening drought conditions around the province.
鈥淢any communities are implementing water restrictions already (and) we anticipate the need to escalate those water restrictions in larger areas of the province,鈥� Ma said. 鈥淎nd just for context, the drought situation is serious. We have not experienced this level of widespread drought across the province this early in the year in recent memory.鈥�
Primary areas of concern include the northeastern corner of B.C., as well as the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island, Ma said, noting that ministry staff are reaching out to communities to begin discussing more measures.
The BC Wildfire Service has already seen at least 566 wildfires since April 1, 2023.
- With files from Wolf Depner/Black Press Media
photos@comoxvalleyrecord.com
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