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Getting dry in Maple Ridge, be careful

Two brush fires recently already
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Pitt Meadows firefighters help out with fires in Interior in previous years. (THE NEWS/files)

Two recent brush fires have Maple Ridge Fire and Rescue trying to get out the message, the forests and fields in the rural part of the city already are getting dry.

Firefighters responded to a call about two significant brush fires, one Sunday in Thornhill and another in Whonnock on Monday, said fire chief Howard Exner.

“The fires were started by homeowners not understanding the dangers of having a fire and being able to control the fire,” Exner said Tuesday.

“We were able to get out there and control the fires, but they can be a dangerous thing. We can end up with a fast-moving brush fire this time of year quite easily, if people aren’t careful with what they’re supposed to be doing,” Exner said.

From April 15 to May 15, Maple Ridge allows what are called “reduction fires,” where homeowners in rural, open-to-burning areas can burn brush and lawn clippings, provided they get a permit.

There’s also another period for doing so in the fall, from Oct. 15 to Nov. 15. However, only garden or yard refuse can be burned, not household items or construction waste. Fires have to be a minimum of 15 metres from homes or the forest, be supervised at all times, and a water hose and shovel have to be nearby.

“So right now, there are no reduction fires allowed,” Exner said.

People also need permits in order to have such fires.

While February was cold and snowy, “We haven’t had our usual rainfall,” Exner said, adding only a quarter of the amount of the usual precipation has fallen so far in March.

“So things are dry out there and people need to be safe when they’re using fire to do things.”

People should keep in mind the approaching wild-fire season.

In the rural, open-to-burning areas, people also can have campfires, unless there’s a campfire ban in place.

The urban parts of Maple Ridge are closed to all types of burning including campfires.

The provincial government has increased its forest firefighting budget by 58 per cent – to $101 million – in 2019.

Some of that money will be used to more prescribed burning.

In a release Tuesday, Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development said that the two previous seasons have been the two worst wildfire seasons on record.

The Association of B.C. Forest Professionals also said Tuesday that a $400,000 grant from the ministry will be used to improve the use of prescribed burns in managing forests. The funding comes from recommendations from the 2017 flood and wildfire review.