Category: Forest Fires

B.C's firefighting bill is up to $170 million

The cost of fighting forest fires in British Columbia this year has topped $170 million. As of yesterday, the fires had burned 322,349 hectares in B.C. More than half of that amount was in the Cariboo Fire Centre. There are no more evacuation orde… more »

Update on Peace Valley OSB

The fire at Peace Valley OSB in Fort St. John, British Columbia broke out in the blending area of the plant around 10pm on Monday night. Firefighters brought the fire under control and it was extinguished by 3am. The employees of the mill were evacua… more »

B.C. fires have burned more than 300,000 ha

So far the forest fires in British Columbia have burned over 300,000 hectares of forest making this season the worst in at least 12 years. Despite the pall of smoke that has hung over much of the province this summer, human carelessness continues. Two… more »

British Columbia continues to burn. Smokes drifts as far as Ontario.

Smoke from British Columbia's forest fires are choking out people all the way to Ontario.Health officials are urging anyone with respiratory problems to stay indoors. Even people without lung problems should avoid strenuous outdoor activity.Visi… more »

Why is the B.C. budget so small for firefighting?

Last year, the province of British Columbia budgeted $60 million for fighting forest fires, but ended up spending $400 million. This year, the province lowered its firefighting budget to $52 million, however it is currently spending almost $6 million… more »

Yukon recalls its fire crews from British Columbia

The Yukon territory has recalled all their firefighters and air tankers from British Columbia where they were helping the province battle wildfires. Forest fire danger ratings in the Yukon have risen to dangerous levels with more hot and dry weather o… more »

Driving through a forest fire

Four Russian men volunteered to help their neighbours protect their homes from an approaching forest fire in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region.As this video shows, the men had a close brush with death when they were trying to escape the village as the… more »

Devastating forest fires in Russia made worse by new law

Russia is currently experiencing large devastating forest fires. Now there is talk that Russia's fire situation has been made way worse due to a new law passed 4 years ago by Vladimir Putin and powerful logging interests that disbanded a centralized s… more »

Pilots of water bomber identified

The pilots of the waterbomber that crashed on Saturday have been identified.Pilot - Tim Whiting, 58, Langley, B.C. Co-Pilot - Brian Tilley, 36, Edmonton, Alberta more »

Two water bomber pilots died in crash

The two pilots that were flying the water bomber when it crashed south of Lytton, British Columbia on Saturday night were killed in the crash. The plane was badly damaged in the crash and burst into flames after impact, starting another wildfire. T… more »

Water bomber crashes in B.C.

A water bomber has crashed in B.C., south of Lytton, in the Fraser Canyon. The crash occurred last night, just before 9pm. The fate of the two crew members on board is not yet known. Source: CBC more »

British Columbia is on fire

Forest fires are a big concern this weekend in British Columbia. Just on Wednesday and Thursday, more than 240 fires ignited in the province. There is no end in sight to the hot, dry conditions. Areas of concern: Cariboo region (northwest of… more »

Firefighting helicopter crashes in B.C.

A firefighting helicopter has crashed near Lillooet, British Columbia. Fortunately both men aboard have survived the crash.The pilot was taken to Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops with pain in his legs, while the co-pilot is being kept in hospital i… more »

TimberWest curtails harvesting operations due to fire risk

TimberWest Forest Corp. has just taken extra steps to reduce the risk of wildfire on its private managed forest lands in British Columbia. "Much of our land base is in close proximity to neighboring communities and the last thing we want is an interfa… more »

Video from Wemotaci native reserve as forest fire approaches

Have you ever been near a forest fire? This video from the Wemotaci native reserve in Quebec shows breathtaking video filmed on Friday as a massive forest fire nears the community. Wemotaci is roughly 300 kilometres north of Trois Rivieres.… more »