Local departments and provincial crews are fighting a wildfire in Metro Vancouver’s təmtəmíxʷtən Belcarra Regional Park Wednesday afternoon. The park borders the villages of Anmore and Belcarra, and witness videos show smoke from the fire visible from across Burrard Inlet in Port Moody’s Reed Point Marina. “Residents are asked to avoid the area and give emergency crews plenty of space to work,” the Village of Anmore said in a social media post. The B.C. Wildfire Service has classified the fire as burning out of control—and the suspected cause as human activity, either accidental or intentional. Its size is estimated at 1.5 hectares and it is burning 2.5 kilometres from Port Moody and 0.5 kilometres away from the closest residential street. Although the blaze is “highly visible,” the BCWS said that as of 5:30 p.m. there was “no immediate threat to nearby structures, critical infrastructure, or public safety.” Provincial crews are attacking the flames with both ground personnel and aviation resources, according to the BCWS website. The Sasamat Volunteer Fire Department, in a Facebook post, said its members were responding to “ground fire under the power lines” near Crystal Creek. Firefighters from Port Moody Fire Rescue have also been deployed. The fire danger rating in the park is currently high, and a campfire ban is in effect across much of the South Coast.
