Category 3 open fire ban restrictions will take effect across the Southeast Fire Centre at 12:00 noon Pacific Time on Thursday, May 21, 2026, including the Rocky Mountain Natural Resource District, which covers the Fernie area. The BC Wildfire Service says the prohibition is being introduced to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety.
Anyone currently conducting a Category 3 open fire within the Southeast Fire Centre must have it fully extinguished by 12:00 noon on May 21. The prohibition is scheduled to remain in place until 12:00 noon on October 31, 2026, unless it is rescinded earlier.
The restriction applies to large-scale open burning, not ordinary campfires. BC Wildfire Service says the prohibition does not include Category 1 campfires or Category 2 open fires, although residents are reminded to use caution with any burning activity as spring conditions continue to change.
A Category 3 open fire includes any fire that burns material in three or more piles at the same time, with each pile not exceeding two metres high and three metres wide; material in one or more piles larger than two metres high or three metres wide; one or more windrows not exceeding 200 metres long or 15 metres wide; or stubble or grass over an area larger than 0.2 hectares.
Air curtain burners and carbonizers will also be prohibited under the order.
The prohibition applies to all areas of the Southeast Fire Centre outside municipal boundaries. It also applies to several types of land within municipal boundaries, including parks, conservancies, recreation sites, recreation trails, ecological reserves, wildlife management areas and private managed forest land. Municipalities may follow BC Wildfire Service prohibitions or impose their own restrictions, so residents within municipal boundaries should check local rules before burning.
The BC Wildfire Service is also asking anyone who conducted Category 3 pile burning over the fall or winter to revisit those sites and ensure they are fully extinguished.
Penalties for violating an open fire prohibition can include a $1,150 ticket, an administrative penalty of up to $10,000, or, upon conviction in court, a fine of up to $100,000 and/or up to one year in jail. If a fire causes or contributes to a wildfire, the person responsible may face fines of up to $1 million, up to three years in jail, and may be required to pay firefighting and associated costs.
