Effective since July 2, the entire Southeast Fire Centre, which includes the Elk Valley, South Country and Cranbrook, is on an open fire ban.
The prohibited activities include: burning any waste, slash, or other materials; stubble or grass fires of any size over any area; and the use of fireworks, sky lanterns, or burning barrels of any size or description.
The ban does not affect campfires that are half a metre high by half a metre wide or smaller. It also allows the use of cooking stoves that use gas, propane, or briquettes.
The Southeast Fire Centre covers the area extending from the U.S. border in the south to Mica Dam in the north and from the Okanagan Highlands and Monashee Mountains in the west to the B.C. - Alberta border in the east. It includes the Selkirk natural resource district and the Rocky Mountain natural resource district.
For more details and up to date information on bans and restrictions, visit www.bcwildfire.ca.