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Campfire results in $1,150 ticket at Lake Koocanusa
On August 10, while patrolling the Lake Koocanusa undeveloped campsites around the lake as part of our South Country Patrols, RCMP was advised of an ongoing issue with a camper having a open wood campfire at their campsite, contrary to current fire restrictions in British Columbia.
“The reporting campers indicated they had approached the campsite, explained the current laws in place within B.C. and were rebuffed by the offending camper. The reporting campers then returned with their own fire extinguisher and put out the wood fire themselves with no response from the offending camper,” explained S/Sgt. Svend Nielsen, Elk Valley RCMP Detachment commander.
The officer attended the offending campsite and observed remnants of a campfire along with evidence related to the extinguisher having been used on the fire.
When approached, the offending camper admitted to the offence and reported they “had learned their lesson.”
The officer, considering the totality of the circumstances and evidence given as well as the ongoing fire risk, issued a violation ticket as per Section 10(4) of the Wildfire Act of British Columbia in the amount of $1,150 dollars.
“Elk Valley Regional RCMP is patrolling the South Country within our area south of Elko on a regular basis, both on water and land.
“If you come across an offence related to the BC Wildfire Act, we encourage you to contact the Elk Valley Regional RCMP to report the incident at 250-425-6233 immediately – we do recognize that some areas in the South Country do not have great cell service,” S/Sgt. Nielsen said.
e-KNOW file photo
