The B.C. Wildfire Service was throwing air tankers, skimmers and helicopters into fighting a fast-spreading wildfire near Bamfield on Monday afternoon.
Burning in the Klanawa Valley, 19 kilometres east of the small coastal community, the fire is being fueled by extremely dry conditions and some wind, said Gordon Robinson, fire information officer for the coastal region.
The fire, first reported Sunday at 9:15 p.m., had grown from about five hectares Monday morning to more than 12 hectares by noon. It is the only wildfire currently listed as out on control on the Island.
Fourteen firefighters on the ground are supported by a helicopter and three-fixed-wing skimmers that are drawing water from nearby lakes to contain the area around the blaze.
Robinson said three land-based air tankers are also dropping fire retardant.
The cause of the fire hasn’t yet been determined.
Another wildfire, the Tugwell Main blaze west of Sooke near Otter Point, was also discovered Sunday at about 9:15 p.m. It burned 0.3 hectares and is now classified as being held.
Robinson said a dry spring has “cured” forest fuels so it doesn’t take much to spark a fire.
He said outflow winds starting Tuesday will bring continued hot, dry conditions and decreasing relative humidity that will increase the risk of fires.
Another fire discovered Sunday near Filberg Creek in Strathcona Provincial Park is listed as under control at 0.4 hectares. The Glenlion River fire, reported June 26 and visible from Port Hardy, is also under control after burning nearly four hectares.
Robinson said there have been 53 fires on Vancouver Island so far this year. About 48 of the fires that have been fully investigated have been determined to have some sort of human cause.
In the entire Coastal Fire Centre region, which includes parts of the mainland and Haida Gwaii, more than 100 fires have been reported and 1,390 hectares have been burned.
