Wildfires and severe drought continue to affect most of British Columbia and the government is urging everyone to do their part and conserve water.
While the recent bought of rain did help crews in their firefighting efforts it’s done little to alleviate the dry conditions.
The province is now calling on all British Columbians to follow regional fire prohibitions and water restrictions.
“Twenty-three of our 34 water basins are in drought level four or five classification,” Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness Bowinn Ma said Thursday.
“We’re calling on everyone to conserve water … every drop counts.”
More than 1.5 million hectares of B.C.’s land and forests have burned so far this year and the BC Wildfire Service says when compared to difficult fire seasons over the past six years, this year’s severity could likely surpass those.
“Just like we saw in 2017, 2018 and 2021,” Cliff Chapman, director of the BC Wildfire Service said at a press conference.
“So this season is at par … Obviously, when it comes to hectares burned, this is the worst fire season.”
There are currently 400 wildfires burning across B.C. with 21 of them being a wildfire of note.
The fire danger rating is variable depending on location: it’s low on the South Coast, low to moderate in Northern B.C. and high to extreme in the southeastern part of the province.
– with files from Erin Ubels