A handful of recently sparked wildfires just north of Salmo, BC are being referred to as “suspicious” by investigators..The Salmo Fire Department, alongside Salmo RCMP, responded to four brush fires located north west of the Hwy. 3 and Hwy. 6 intersection on July 24, and police believe all four of the fires were human-caused and possibly deliberately set..“Our investigators have been working diligently on this case, and have seized physical evidence from the fire scenes,” said Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey, BC RCMP in the Southeast District..“Fire crews worked fast to extinguish each of the fires before they could spread.”.Upon arriving to one of the fires, crews spotted an “unknown male fleeing the area on foot.” The person of interest was described to police as wearing a pair of tan-coloured pants..Emergency crews attended three additional blazes in the Salmo area since Saturday. The most recent included a small fire discovered around 5 a.m. on July 26 at the end of Lagoon Road, a fire at about 4:30 p.m. up the Bombi pass, and the last at 5 p.m. near the intersection of Highways 3 and 6..So far this year, 1,239 fires – 34 of which sparked this week – have scorched 448,952 hectares..BC Wildfire Service says these numbers are significantly higher than the 10-year-average, and Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued a heat wave warning for much of southern BC, saying daytime temperatures will likely hit the low 30s in many areas from Thursday to Sunday morning..Reid Small is a BC correspondent for the Western Standard.rsmall@westernstandardonline.com
