Partial fire ban issued for County of Barrhead

Barrhead Regional Fire Services (BRFS) has issued a partial fire ban for the County of Barrhead.

Fire chief Gary Hove declared the ban at 12 p.m. on May 23.

The ban prohibits the lighting of outdoor fires as well as setting off of fireworks. The ban also suspends all fire permits including agricultural fires and burn barrels.

The ban does not include fires which are contained in cooking and heating appliances, ie camp stoves and barbeques, that are fueled by propane or other gases.

Supervised fires contained in a fire facility, such as a fire pit, for cooking or heating and fires contained in fire facilities in designated camping and recreation areas are also not included in the ban.

BRFS noted they are still issuing permits for industrial facilities and sites.

The fine for a fire during the ban is $250 for a first offence, $500 for a second and $1,000 for the third. In addition to the fines, if the fire department is called to put a fire out that has gotten out of hand the resident is on the hook for the costs of putting out the fire.

The ban follows a busy May-long weekend where BRFS was called out to reports of three wildland fires the first one May 18 on Township Road 630 near Range Road 32, the second May 19 in Bloomsbury and the third May 20 in Lac La Nonne.

The fire in Lac La Nonne is believed to have been started accidentally by a spark from the charging of a side by side off-highway vehicle.

“The owners and the neighbours did a really good job of containing the fire,” Hove said.

Surrounding areas

On May 22, Alberta Environment and Parks (AEP) also issued a fire and off-highway vehicle (OHV) ban for Woodlands County and much of Northern Alberta. The ban covers the forest areas of Edson, Whitecourt, Grande Prairie, Lac La Biche, Slave Lake Peace River, Fort McMurray and High Level.

All fire permits are suspended and no new fire permits will be issued.

The ban affects all outdoor fires including cooking and warming fires even if they are done in an approved fire pit, brush pile fires, slash pile fires and the use of burn barrels. The ban also includes backwoods or random camping areas, charcoal briquettes, deep fryers (e.g. turkey fryers), tiki torches and wood fires in outdoor recreation facilities such as group campsites, gazebos, teepees, and wood-burning stoves inside tentlike structures.

Propane fire pits, stoves, barbecues and catalytic or infrared-style heaters that are CSA approved are allowed.

OHVs for industrial use, agricultural use, and traditional use by Indigenous peoples as well as those used on private lands are also allowed.

For the most up-to-date information on fire bans visit www.albertafirebans.ca.