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Forest fire burns southeast of Port Alberni

Firefighters attacking the fire from ground, air: Coastal Fire Centre
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Approximately 15 ground attack firefighters, three air tankers, one helicopter and three water tenders attack a fire near Mt. Arrowsmith, Saturday afternoon. JUSTIN FRASER PHOTO

A forest fire is burning 15 kilometres southeast of Port Alberni, near Mount Arrowsmith.

As of Sunday morning, the fire was still estimated at 20 hectares in size. The fire had seen “minimal growth” overnight, according to Ryan Turcot, fire information officer with the Coastal Fire Centre.

There are now twenty-seven firefighters on site, as well as air support.

The fire was first noticeable from Port Alberni at approximately 4:30 p.m. Saturday, according to one person at Pacific Rim Centre.

“The fire is currently 20 hectares in size. That’s an estimate,” said Turcot on Saturday.

“Today we had four fire fighting personnel attacking the fire in addition to air support.” That air support, Turcot added, included four air tankers and one helicopter.

The Martin Mars waterbomber is still not on the water at Sproat Lake, so was not one of the air tankers.

He didn’t know what started the fire. The sky was clear but temperatures between 4–5 p.m. were between 32 and 33 degrees Celsius, according to The Weather Network.

“At this time the cause of the fire is under investigation. We initially got reports of this fire late this afternoon,” Turcot said.

“We do have personnel investigating specifically what caused this fire.”

editor@albernivalleynews.com



Susie Quinn

About the Author: Susie Quinn

A journalist since 1987, I proudly serve as the Alberni Valley News editor.
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