By: Korie Marshall
Just three days after issuing a blanket smoke advisory for the Northern Health region, the Ministry of Environment has ended the advisory.
On July 18, the ministry and the Northern Health Authority issued a blanket smoke advisory, intended to last for the rest of the fire season, because of the rapidly changing smoke situation. At the time, smoke levels across the region were dropping, but had been so erratic as to make managing smoke advisories for individual communities ineffective. So the ministry had issued an advisory for an extremely large area not based strictly on the air quality monitors, and warned high risk patients to take proper precautions.
However cool damp weather across the region over the following weekend decreased smoke production. On Monday July 21, Northern Health posted a news release on their website saying the smoke advisory for the Omineca and North East regions of BC had been ended.
The release says the Ministry of Environment and Northern Health will monitor the smoke levels in the region and advisories will be issued if required.
As of Friday July 25, open fires are still banned across the province, though campfires are permitted in all but the Kamloops and Cariboo fire centres. Five fires of note were still burning in the Prince George Fire Centre, including the Mount McAllister and Red Deer Creek fires. Six fires of note were still burning in the Kamloops Fire Centre. For more information check out http://bcwildfire.ca/.
