Fire at the Rise Caused By Experimenting With A Lighter
Officials say it was accidental
8/17/2012
The grassland fire that took off on Tuesday at The Rise has been determined to have been an accidental human caused fire. Vernon Fire Rescue Services working with the RCMP and Forestry Compliance and Enforcement started their investigation shortly after the fire was brought under control. All three departments working together followed up on eyewitness accounts from members of the public they have been able to identify a young person who was responsible for what has been determined to be an accidental fire.
They' ve determined the young person found a lighter, tested it and accidentally lit a fire in the tinder dry grass. What started as a spark in the grass took off out of control in a very short time.
The warning needs to be very clear at this time that the conditions in our area right now are such that a fire can be out of control in minutes.
"There were a few tense hours for fire fighters and local residents in the area of The Rise. We were very lucky," said Deputy Chief Skolrood, "We did not have any loss of structures or lives and nobody was severely injured in this fire". Thanks to the quick work by Vernon Fire Rescue Services, Okanagan Landing Volunteers, BX Swan Lake Fire Department and the BC Wildfire Management Branch the fire was brought under control by midnight.
The young person, who cannot be identified, has been cooperating with the investigators from all three departments and they are recommending that this case be forwarded to the Restorative Justice Program so the young person can be held accountable for their actions.