Crews have now largely extinguished a fast-moving wildfire that burnt up more than a hectare of brush and forest above Horseshoe Bay, Monday.
West Vancouver Fire & Rescue has been leading a multi-agency response since the fire was first reported around 1 p.m. when smoke was spotted coming from the slope above a Highway 99 rest area and viewpoint.
“Over the night, we didn't have any wind, which is great, so the fire has been held,” said West Vancouver Fire & Rescue Chief Dave Clark on Tuesday morning. “There's the odd spot fire but very easily manageable. We're not losing any more landscape… which is awesome.”
By the time the first truck arrived, the fire had grown to the size of a baseball diamond, Clark said. At its peak, they estimated it grew to a hectare in size – 10,000 square metres.
“It's not that big but the speed that it moved was really what was concerning,” Clark said, adding that there was on onshore breeze coming from Howe Sound at the time and a lot of moss and dead trees in the area that provided plenty of fuel.
Crews closed the Sea to Sky Highway and diverted traffic.
Clark said they had a lot of luck on their side in getting the blaze under control. The fire was spotted and reported quickly. The first officer on the scene got water on it immediately, slowing the spread, and he called BC Wildfire Service for assistance. Metro Vancouver and District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services members joined in the effort. By 2:15 p.m., an airtanker arrived from Kamloops to dump fire retardant on the site. Water bombers and Talon Helicopters followed in the aerial attack.
“We had a lot of resources at it pretty quick but we were lucky,” Clark said, noting that it’s still early in wildfire season in B.C. “If this was August, it would be very difficult to try to track down a couple of helicopters and fire retardant tankers.”
When they first learned how fast the fire was spreading, Clark said he feared for a much worse outcome.
“I was anticipating this was going to be a big black line going all the way up to the Cypress lodge,” he said.
With no lightning in recent days, Clark said they are confident the fire was human caused. Sometime this week, a fire investigator will try to find the exact source but Clark cautioned they may never know for sure.
“Because of the proximity to the (rest area), the speculation is that it was possibly a cigarette butt or something like that,” he said. “Because of the intensity of the fire and the size, it can be kind of difficult to find out specifically what it was.”
The case underscores the need for greater vigilance in keeping any combustible materials out of dry forested areas, Clark said, and the importance of calling 911 as soon as anyone spots smoke.
In August of 2018, a three-hectare swath of forest around Whyte Lake burned in a fire that was determined to have been caused by embers left in a makeshift oven belonging to someone living in the bush.
Early Tuesday, the southbound lane was reopened but the northbound lane remained closed while the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure sent a geotechnical engineer to assess the site. A BC Wildfire expert was also brought in to cut down hazardous trees.
“That slope where the fire ripped the trees out is a little precarious so we're concerned about rocks falling on the highway, of course,” Clark said.
West Vancouver owes a debt of gratitude to all the outside agencies who pitched in to help, Clark added.
“They were amazing and that made the difference,” he said.
The current wildfire risk is listed as "moderate" although continued warm and dry conditions will likely see that elevated to "high" by the weekend, according to the latest forecast.
“We have had some rain we're not to that same spot that we would have been last year, where things were still quite lush and green. Things are starting to die really, really early this year,” Clark said.
#BCFire @BCFerries @BCFireSmart from Horseshoe Bay Ferry terminal #vancouver too close for comfort pic.twitter.com/FKn5XmLtKE
— 🌍Diane Mueller 🇨🇦 @[email protected] (@pythondj) June 26, 2023
Sea-to-Sky highway side fire at entrance to Horseshoe Bay. pic.twitter.com/e1J8vlnC1F
— Jim Mullin 🇺🇦🇨🇦 (@Jim_MullinKGN) June 26, 2023
