Out of Control Grass Burn Destroys House in Gilpin BC
By Les Johnson
At approx 3 p.m. on March 25, an out of control grass burn, at 1900 Gilpin Road, spread to a nearby structure. This resulted in the complete destruction of the building and a vehicle parked nearby as well as downing a power line.
Initially the local people with lawn watering hoses were the only ones fighting the fire. That eventually turned into an effort to control it and keep it from spreading to other structures, a mobile home and garage, nearby.
By the time I showed up around 4 p.m. the entire structure had been consumed.
RCMP attended followed by the Initial Attack Crew, a fire team, from the Grand Forks Wildfire Management Branch of Forestry. A water tender from the Grand Forks Fire Department was later sent in to assist.
No one was hurt and animals on the nearby property were removed to safety.
At this time of year many people resort to burning off the long grass from last year. An unintended consequence can be a dangerous fire. Always remember you shoudl never turn your back on a fire and assume it is dead – it might just be dormant and spring back to life with the next gust of wind.
