The forecast of a warm, dry summer has provincial officials warning they'll crack down early on illegal campfires and burning violations in hopes of preventing another dangerous forest-fire season.
Forests Minister Pat Bell said fire inspectors will be patrolling campgrounds and high-risk wooded areas as soon as fire bans become necessary.
"We are concerned again that we may be in for another hot and dry summer," Bell told reporters at a press conference yesterday.
"The early predictions at this point are for weather patterns that are dryer than normal and warmer than normal, particularly through the months of May and June.
"It is, we think, another year we are going to have to be very, very cautious."
The province spent $403 million to fight more than 3,000 fires that burned over 242,000 hectares in 2009.
At the peak, more than 790 fires were burning in a single day and the province had more aircraft -- water bombers and helicopters -- in the air than the entire Canadian air force, said Bell.
The province is negotiating with Coulson Group of Companies, owner of the Martin Mars water bomber, over a possible contract to fight forest fires this season.
A ticket for an illegal campfire is $345. Last year, 23 per cent of the province's forest fires were human-caused, and almost all fires at this time of year are the result of human activity, said Bell.
Despite a helicopter crash that killed one man, and fires that destroyed seven structures, Bell said 2009 was generally considered a success for provincial firefighters.
The government is working on new legislation to beef up the power of fire investigators, said Bell.
Meanwhile, the province is expected to officially open its new $4.5-million provincial forest-fire command centre in Kamloops in the next few weeks.
The centre was previously located in Victoria. However, Bell said the new location will centralize numerous services and streamline the forest-fire fighting system.
