Canadian Forestry Journal, August, ipij. 



167 



Forest Fire Situation 



Abundant R?.in-fall in Ontario and Western Quebec — British 

 Columbia Facing a Dry Hot August. 



Since the last report in the Journ- 

 al was written, the heavy rains in 

 Ontario and the western portions of 

 Quebec have kept down serious 

 forest fires and made those parts of 

 the country fairly immune for some 

 weeks to come. No very large fires 

 have been reported in the territory 

 mentioned, although settlers' fires 

 in Ontario have been this year a 

 source of much anxiety. In Eastern 

 Quebec, fires were frequent until 

 about the middle of August when 

 rains improved the situation. Many 

 stubborn outbreaks were encoun- 

 tered by the Quebec Forest Service, 

 and the protective associations but 

 the latest reports speak of the dan- 

 ger as havin-g temporarily lifted. 



In the West. 



Reports from the western pro- 

 vinces indicate that practically the 

 only district where there is serious 

 danger from forest fires is in British 

 Columbia. Particularly in the Fra- 

 ser Valley and the southern parts of 

 the province. Conditions have been 

 very dry there and a considerable 

 number of fires have been reported 

 although the damage at the present 

 time would not appear to have been 

 very extensive. In the Provinces of 

 Alberta, Saskatchewan and Mani- 

 toba the weather has been moderate- 

 ly damp and consequently the num- 

 ber of fires reported has been com- 

 paratively small. The weather the 

 last month has been drier than dur- 

 ing the month previous but there 

 will be no serious danger unless the 

 dry weather continues without any 

 rains intervening. - __,. 



The Victoria Report. 



Victoria, August 14: The Minister 

 of Lands is in receipt of telegraphic 

 advices covering the fire situation 

 during the past week throughout 

 the province. With the exception 

 of the Hazleton and Prince Rupert 

 Districts, where rain has made the 

 position comparatively secure, the 

 weather has been hot and dry, and 

 very favourable to outbreaks of fire. 

 In the Tete Jaune division all fires 

 have been extinguished with the 

 exception of one north of Berg 

 Lake, Mount Robson Park, and in- 

 termittent strong winds add to the 

 task of the fire-fighters. From Fort 

 George, Nelson, and Cranbrook dis- 

 tricts, reports show that all fires 

 have been extinguished or are under 

 control, without serious damage be- 

 ing done. The hazard in the Lil- 

 looet section is great, owing to oc- 

 casional strong winds, and similar 

 conditions prevail in the Kamloops 

 district. Twenty-five thousand feet 

 of timber were burnt as a result of 

 two outbreaks in the Kettle Valley, 

 and six other fires were fought in 

 the Vernon forest district. Intense- 

 ly hot and dry weather accompanied 

 bv light winds from the south was 

 responsible for an exceedingly dan- 

 gerous situation in the Vancouver 

 district, where no fewer than 48 

 fires were fought, the area burnt 

 over being approximately five 

 thousand acres, principally slash. 

 Much damage was done to property, 

 including destruction of two houses 

 in the Fraser Valley, and cabins in 

 Burnaby and North Vancouver. The 

 fires at Gordon Pasha Lake and 



