District of Barriere enacts complete fire ban

BARRIERE, B.C. — As of noon Wednesday (July 27), a complete fire ban will be in effect for the District of Barriere until further notice.

In a local notice, the district states it’s due to extreme hot weather being forecast for the region. Environment Canada issued a heat warning for most of B.C. earlier in the week.

As of Wednesday, Category Two and Three open fires are prohibited within the Kamloops Fire Centre. However, the prohibition does not apply to campfires that are a half-metre high by a half-metre wide.

The B.C. Wildfire Service says the prohibitions apply to all public and private land within the Kamloops Fire Centre jurisdiction, unless specified otherwise in an enactment, such as a local government bylaw.

As of Tuesday (July 26), the danger rating for the Kamloops Fire Centre is mostly high, meaning new fires may start easily, burn vigorously, and challenge fire suppression.