Two grass fires in 24 hours

From Comox Valley Record, July 22nd, 2015

"Although the temperatures may be dropping slightly, the Comox Fire Department is warning the public to remain diligent, as their crew battled two brush fires this past weekend.

Fire chief Gord Schreiner said around 5:30 p.m., the department received a report of a brush fire on Southwind Road.

"The fire started as a result of monster truck activity in a nearby farmers field. It was allowed, but it was started either from the heat (generated from the vehicle) or because of mechanical problems."

The fire grew to between four to five acres. Three trucks from the station were used to contain and extinguish the fire, along with pumper trucks from Courtenay and Oyster River Fire Departments, as the area does not have access to hydrants, added Schreiner.

Crews battled the fire for about three hours, which came very close to homes.

"One family had garden hoses out on their front lawn," he explained. "We were very happy afterwards - no structures were affected."

On Sunday, a small fire started near the Little River Nature Park, which Schreiner said began near a homeless encampment/log structure. It was considered "fairly minor" but he added both were preventable fires.

While he said it appears the message is getting out about not disposing cigarette butts outside in the extremely dry conditions, Schreiner warns the public should not let their guard down despite the "soft days" of light rain or cooler temperatures.

As of Monday, there were 159 active wildfire across the province, with three states of local emergency due to wildfire and seven evacuation alerts or order currently in effect."

The Comox Fire Department used over 1300' of hose to soak down the burnt field and the brush around the nearby houses.