Small brush fire near Stawamus School quickly extinguished; public urged to be extra vigilant in dry conditions

Squamish Fire Rescue and local civilians responded quickly this afternoon to a brush fire near Stawamus Elementary School. The call came in to Squamish Fire Rescue just before 2:30 p.m. and a crew arrived within minutes. Passersby in the area were already responding to the blaze with fire extinguishers.

The fire spread quickly in the dry conditions and burned an area of 60 feet by 100 feet, and ran 30 feet up nearby trees. 10 firefighters responded and the fire was extinguished quickly.

The fire was human caused and Squamish RCMP is following up.

“Conditions are extremely dry at the moment and so everyone’s full vigilance is needed, even though it is only April,” says District of Squamish Fire Chief Bill Stoner.  “Thanks to the accessible location and quick response, this fire was dealt with quickly. We only have to look to the Magee Road fire burning in the Upper Squamish Valley to see the devastation that a fire can cause.”

An all-out campfire ban has been implemented in the District of Squamish this afternoon due to the dry conditions and the ongoing emergency response to the Magee Road Fire, in order to further reduce the fire risk. The ban will be re-evaluated if conditions change.

Please call 9.1.1 to report a fire.

For the latest information on current wildfire activity throughout the province, visit http://www.bcwildfire.ca

April 17, 2020