Image: StockSnap/Pixabay/Scott James
Since it’s been hot enough – as Monty Python would say – to boil a monkey’s bum, British Columbia will be banning most types of fires in coastal communities starting at noon tomorrow.
In the Coastal Fire Centre, covering Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast, the Gulf Islands, and the Lower Mainland, all category two and three fires will be verboten. This includes sky lanterns, fireworks, burn barrels and cages, binary exploding targets, and air curtain burners. Category one fires, which include campfires no bigger than half a meter tall and half a meter wide, will still be permitted, as will gas and propane or briquette cooking stoves.
Of course, there are rules to be followed: campfires have to be inside a fireguard, all flammable material around the fire must be removed, and either eight liters of water or a hand tool must be close by in order to extinguish the fire properly.
Ignoring a ban or the rules could cost you up to $1,150. If you cause a wildfire, that’s a fine of $100,000 to $1,000,000 and possibly a year in the slammer. Be safe out there.
Love, Dr. Scott James
