Wildfires that went dormant over the winter have once again moved above ground, producing visible smoke and smouldering, the B.C. Wildfire Service says.
The service says these “holdover fires” are primarily in the Prince George Fire Centre, which covers the northeastern quadrant of the province, and are being aided by ongoing drought conditions in the region.
“A holdover fire is a fire that remains dormant and/or undetected for a considerable time after it starts,” the service said in a bulletin, adding they are particularly common for lightning-caused fires or fires of “considerable size.”
It is not uncommon for holdover wildfires to be reported, though in past years notices about their reappearance generally come later in the year, around March or April.
Fires survive in the deadfall and forest litter, smoldering until conditions get warm and dry enough for them to flare up.
This is a direct result of forest managaement practices that didn’t allow for any fire at all … so when there are fires now, there is a huge amount of fuel stockpiled (dead trees, decades of fallen leaves, etc).
And that is really so amazing.
Like that underground fire in that PA coal mine that has been burning for 50 years or whatever…
Just wild to think about.
This is true every year, but this year is especially bad because it’s been warm and dry for most of the winter. There’s usually a few holdovers, not dozens, and especially not so many that actually need some type of response.