Gibsons fire crews responded to a “pretty significant size brush fire” just before 2 a.m. Friday, Gibsons & District Volunteer Fire Department Fire Chief Rob Michael told Coast Reporter.
The fire, which grew to a size of 0.3 hectares, was contained around 5 a.m., said Michael. No one was injured and the cause of the blaze is still under investigation.
“We ended up calling in additional resources from both the Roberts Creek and Sechelt Fire Department,” said Michael. “Overall, there were 19 firefighters that attended, B.C. Ambulance and RCMP."
Michael explained the fire was showing what BC Wildfire calls “Rank 3 activity.”
“It was an organized flame front. Not quite into the trees but pretty big surface fire,” he said.
This fire follows a concerning trend, Michael said this is the fifth brush fire the department has responded to in the last three weeks, an above average frequency. He also included that this fire was the largest of the group.
Fire conditions on the Sunshine Coast have become increasingly severe this season. On July 20, the day before this fire broke out, Elphinstone increased their fire danger rating to extreme.
Sechelt Fire Department Fire Chief Trevor Pike said that Sechelt has seen similar conditions, “We haven't really had any large scale fires in the last little while here. We've had several small fires, lots of brush fires and bushfires.”
Pike also commented that the awareness of the public is a key in coordinating a quick response to wildfires.
“We got lots of good early warning right now because people are engaged. They're on the lookout. As soon as they noticed the fire, we've been getting called right away," he said.
Jordan Copp is the Coast Reporter’s civic and Indigenous affairs reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.
