The Lillooet Fire Department and the B.C. Wildfire Service recently gave a graphic demonstration of the difference between a structure that employs FireSmart principles and one that doesn’t.
They set up two side-by-side wooden structures on the tennis courts adjacent to the Lillooet REC Centre on Mar. 17.
One of the wooden structures had unpruned trees close by, an open space beneath its deck, debris piled around and on top of it, a cedar shake roof and gutters clogged with leaves and needles.
Using a shovelful of embers, the Fire Department tried to simulate what occurs when an ember shower from a forest fire falls on a non-fire-proof, non-Fire Smart structure.
Not surprisingly, a fire ignited, flames began to lick the structure within a minute or two, the vinyl siding curled and buckled from the intensity of the flames and heat, and black smoke billowed above the tennis court.
When embers were placed at the base of the structure with the closed deck, clean gutters, trees located at least 10 metres away from the structure, fire-safe roofing, closed aluminum soffiting, concrete Hardie Board on the walls, etc., a small fire ignited at the base of the deck but did little damage.
“What we’re seeing is when burning happens, just having a closed-in, smooth-surface area can make a difference,” Lillooet Fire Chief Darren Oike told the News. “It will burn somewhat but there’s less chance of the fire getting under a deck unnoticed, for example. We want to make sure woodpiles are not in close proximity to a home because they are a fuel load. Otherwise, all of a sudden you have a fire building up in intensity.”
He also advises homeowners to “get away from single-pane windows. Those windows will break and the fire will get inside the house.”
Paul Williams from the Lillooet Fire Zone crew says property owners do not need to clear-cut everything around their house. But trees should be thinned within 30 metres of the home to leave three metres of space between them, and branches should be pruned within eight feet of the ground. Pine, spruce and juniper trees are all highly flammable.
Fire season has already arrived in the Lillooet-Lytton area with grassfires in both communities. The demonstration was a vivid reminder of what property owners can do to protect their homes and prevent wildfires. Their actions can mean the difference between a home that is untouched and one that is reduced to a concrete foundation and smoking ruins. Forested and rural subdivisions, farms, acreages and cottages are all especially vulnerable to wildfires.
But Paul Williams said FireSmart principles should also be followed by people living within the District of Lillooet. “Those principles are the first line of defence,” he explained.
He said residents should begin thinking about FireSmarting their homes as early as October, make plans over the winter months and be ready in the spring for what may come in the summer.
Traditionally, he said, fire season runs from Apr. 1 to Oct. 31.
Chief Oike added that the Fire Department will be carrying out prescribed burns this spring on local trails and other locations within the boundaries of the District of Lillooet.
If you see a wildfire, call this number immediately: 1-800-663-5555.
For more information on FireSmart and Wildfire Safety, please go to http://www.for.gov.bc.ca
For more information on the Lillooet Fire Department, please visit http://www.lillooetbc.ca/City-Services/Fire-Department.aspx
