Rick Stiebel/News Gazette staff
Think twice before you flick your butt, then just don’t do it.
Four incidents in the past few days involving small fires started by carelessly discarded cigarettes have Langford Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Chris Aubrey reminding people to exercise more caution.
One fire was in the median on the Bear Mountain Parkway – a frequent trouble spot during warmer weather – while the others started in flower beds near parking lots attached to local businesses.
“People don’t realize how dry conditions are because we had such a wet spring,” Aubrey said. “We’re already at a moderate fire risk rating, so we’re asking people to use caution. Smokers, especially, need to have a plan in place for safe disposal of their cigarette butts.”
With the warmer weather appearing to have finally arrived, Colwood Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Greg Chow wants to remind people to be extra vigilant with the use of barbecues, backyard fire pits and chimeras.
“They are not permitted at all when the fire risk is rated at high or extreme,” Chow said. “And backyard burning is not permitted at any time (in Colwood).”
It’s also timely to remind people that campfires are forbidden at Esquimalt Lagoon at all times, Chow added.
For the latest updates on the fire rating, visit colwood.ca.