Campers hit with fire fines as B.C. battles blazes and Village of Clinton counts cost

CLINTON, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA — Conservation officers in British Columbia say they have discovered numerous illegal campfires during spot checks, as wildfire crews battle out-of-control blazes that are threatening communities in the south of the province.

The B.C. Conservation Officer Service says in a statement on social media that it issued 19 violation tickets and almost $22,000 in fines over the weekend, and ignorance of bans across much of the province is no excuse.

Bans on even small campfires are in place in the Cariboo, Kamloops and Southeast fire centres, and parts of coastal B.C., while less-strict fire bans and restrictions cover all other areas.

The crackdown comes as authorities in the Village of Clinton, B.C., assess damage after residents were forced to flee their homes last week in the face of a fire complex that saw evacuation orders expand overnight.

Mayor Roland Stanke said in a social media post on Monday that people whose properties suffered damage will be contacted personally, while fire crews in the community continue to stamp out smouldering embers that can cause flare-ups.

The Pear Lake and Fiftynine Creek fires that merged over the weekend and have been threatening Clinton, 350 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, are among about 135 fires burning in B.C., about 50 of them out of control.

The Stswecem’c Xget’tem First Nation issued an evacuation orders for some properties Monday due to the fire near Clinton.

As of Tuesday, there were six evacuation orders and three evacuation alerts associated with the blaze.

Stanke said in his post that people who have defied the evacuation order in Clinton will have to boil their water, since a reservoir bypass has allowed untreated water to be used to fight the flames.

He said BC Hydro crews are also assessing damage before power can be fixed because lines are still down in the village, which has about 650 residents.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 28, 2026.

The Canadian Press