The Cameron Bluffs fire has grown to 208 hectares despite cooler temperatures and a bit of rain early Friday, June 9, 2023.
鈥淓arly this morning we received a very small trace amount of rain on the fire,鈥� incident commander Bryce Moreira from the BC Wildfire Service said in a Coastal Fire Centre briefing. While the rainfall wasn鈥檛 significant it was enough to decrease fire activity, 鈥淲hich is good news for crews,鈥� he said.
The BCWS has four helicopters working the fire, eight pieces of heavy equipment, two unit crews and several initial attack crews totalling 60 personnel. An additional 20-person crew will be tasked to the Cameron Bluffs fire later today, and air tankers will be deployed as available.
Heavy equipment is situated on the west flank of the fire closest to Cathedral Grove. Helicopters are working the east flank closest to homes around Cameron Lake and air tankers have been tasked to that area as well, Moreira said.
Ground crews last night conducted a hand ignition on the south flank to give them an 鈥渁nchor point鈥� to continue working that side from the ground. More ground crews are working the north side of the fire.
The downturn in the weather means crews have been able to work directly on the fire, Moreira said.
鈥淲e haven鈥檛 seen any noticeable growth to the east or west,鈥� he said. The fire is still growing to the south, away from the highway.
鈥淲e鈥檒l still be working this fire for the next several days.鈥�
Highway 4 remains closed between Parksville and Port Alberni due to the fire.
The weather is expected to turn hot and dry in the region next week. The fire danger throughout most of the Island is moderate to high, with some areas in south Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland at extreme. There is a complete fire ban in the Coastal Fire Centre except for Haida Gwaii. This includes campfires, open fires, fireworks, sky lanterns, burn barrels, binary exploding targets, chimeneas or torches. The City of Port Alberni has also enacted a complete fire ban.
Premier David Eby was questioned by media during another event on whether the province is putting enough of a priority on the Cameron Bluffs fire. 鈥淭he priority of the province is to get that fire fought and to address the crisis this represents for your community,鈥� he said.
鈥淔ood trucks and fuel trucks are getting through on the detour right now. So there鈥檚 no need to buy more than what you need: essential supplies are getting through.鈥�
He said decisions on how fires are fought are left up to the experts and are based 鈥渙n available resources, fires in other communities, safety for firefighters; and we expect and trust the experts to make those decisions.鈥�
Kimberly Kelly from the Coastal Fire Centre said the fire is 鈥渁dequately resourced鈥nd staffing is appropriate for the fire behaviour.鈥� It is a priority for the province because of its proximity to Highway 4 and Cathedral Grove.
There is no danger to life, structures or critical infrastructure on the Cameron Bluffs fire, she added. She deferred questions on how long the highway would be closed to the Ministry of Transportation. A road advisory from Friday morning stated the highway will likely be closed 鈥渂eyond the fire itself鈥� due to damage to the road and instability of the slope above the highway due to the wildfire.
Road alerts can be found online at under the Emergency Events link.
The alternate route to the east side of the Island, via Bamfield and Lake Cowichan, will be closed on Friday between 1鈥�9 p.m. while crews retrieve a semi-truck that rolled down an embankment at Francis Lake.
The government and Mosaic Forest Management are taking heavy criticism from residents in the Alberni Valley for not opening up logging roads to the northeast, through Horne Lake. The route through Mosaic鈥檚 property has long been sought as a second entrance to the Alberni Valley, which the provincial government officially rejected in 2016鈥攐pting instead to make improvements to Highway 4.
The transportation ministry has said the Horne Lake route will be used for emergency vehicles only, and some BC Wildfire Service crew.
Eby said he鈥檚 been told the Horne Lake route is 鈥渟teeper and narrower than the current route and we鈥檝e already seen safety issues with a truck going off the road and down an embankment. I鈥檓 advised it鈥檚 not a viable route.鈥�
susie.quinn@albernivalleynews.com
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