According to the BC Wildfire Service, 1,312 wildfires have burned in BC since April 1st, with over 556,000 hectares burned.
The average for this time of year is 760 wildfires, and 114,000 hectares burned.
Rob Schweitzer with the BC Wildfire Service said that only 17 of the active wildfires burning across BC were human-caused.
“The vast majority of new starts over the long weekend were due to natural causes. Of the very small handful of human-caused wildfires, all have been declared out, they’re under control, or they’re being held.”
“Visibility remains a challenge due to wildfire smoke and has been hampering our aviation operations.”
Schweitzer said they’ve still flown over 4,000 hours with their air tankers, and over 23,000 hours with their helicopters.
There are 259 active fires burning across the province, with 32 wildfires of note.
Of the active wildfires:
- 53 are in the Prince George Fire Centre, three are of note.
- Eight are in the Northwest Fire Centre, with one of note.
- 46 are in the Cariboo Fire Centre, with six of note.