Tuesday marked the 33rd day without rain, and while for most people in the Lower Mainland no rain is a good thing, New Westminster Fire and Rescue Service is reminding residents to be careful in the dry days of summer.
Fire crews have attended a couple of minor outdoor fires during the recent dry spell and want residents to take care not to inadvertently start fires.
"People are being rather careless with discarding cigarette butts," said fire inspector Kathy Ius. "We have had a couple of small, smouldering fires. Nothing too drastic."
The fire department urges people to be cautious when dealing with cigarette butts and burning materials.
"The fire starting hazard has risen dramatically in the past few weeks," Ius said. "Don't throw your cigarette butts out, and make sure any burning materials are put out properly."
Meanwhile, next door in Burnaby, firefighters spent Friday afternoon putting out three bush fires along the railway tracks between Highway 1 and Lougheed.
"Crews responded and put them out," said Burnaby's Assistant Fire Chief Darrell Smith.
While the blazes were easily stopped, Smith said blazes similar to those on Friday can start and spread quickly, especially in and around parks.
"Burnaby has a lot of parks, and people walk in the parks and sometimes people smoke and throw the cigarette butts (into the bush)," he said.
Smokers should be extra careful where they throw their cigarette butts and make sure it's completely out before they toss it to reduce its chances of starting a fire, he said.
But it's not only cigarette butts that can start a fire. Other catalysts include sunlight, glass, lightning and even cars.
"The heat from the catalytic converter will start a fire," he said.
During the summer months people need to be extra cautious when enjoying the outdoors - especially during this dry period in the Lower Mainland.
There are many things outdoors that can catch on fire quickly, he added.
"Things like bark mulch and dried trees," he said. "The cedar trees, those types of things, they catch fire and they'll burn extremely fast."
If someone does spot a fire, the first thing to do is assess whether it could be put out easily - if it's small enough. If it's gotten too big, call the fire department, Smith urged.
"If they have a bottle of water, pour it on it, but if it's big, get out of there," he said. "Call us."
The Burnaby Fire Department has a wild land team that handles bush fires and forest fires, but Smith would rather not see any fire escalate that much.
"Just be careful with fire," he said. "And enjoy the summer."
For more information on preventing wildfires, visit bcwildfire.ca/prevention or check out BCAA's fire safety tips for the home at www.bcaa.com/learning-centre/home/fire-protection.
