North Cowichan municipal forester Derrell Frank says if dryer then usual conditions continue, the forest reserve may have to be declared off-limits to the public.
“We will assess the situation in the middle of the week,” Frank said after a brush fire off Grace Road in the Crofton area, which is believed to have been started by an abandoned camp fire.
Members of the Chemainus and Crofton fire halls – as well as other responders – kept that fire under control, but it could have been worse if the response had not been swift, Frank said.
“They hit it really hard, really fast,” he said. “They kept it a ground fire, rather than getting up in the crowns of the trees.”
Temperatures in the days before the fire were in the high 20s, with humidity in the 45 percent range.
Anyone with information about how the fire might have started should call the Municipality of North Cowichan at 250-746-3100.
