BC Wildfire Service has released their summer seasonal outlook for 2025, giving residents across the province a heads-up on what to expect in the months ahead.
While many parts of BC are facing higher fire risks this year, the situation looks different for Vancouver Island and the Campbell River area.
Summer 2025 Fire Forecast
In addition to the detailed outlook, BC also published this video explaining the key factors that will shape the 2025 fire season:
What’s Happening Across BC 🔥
Here’s the situation across the province: parts of northeastern BC and the Central Interior are dealing with multi-year drought conditions that have been sticking around since 2022.
That’s a long time to go without enough rain!
The numbers tell the story – we’ve already seen 563,890 hectares burn this year, which is way above the 10-year average of 118,414 hectares for this time of year.
One thing making this season particularly tricky is something called “overwintering fires.” These are fires that went underground during winter and are now popping back up as things warm up. Most of these are happening up in the Fort Nelson and Fort St. John areas.
What This Means for Vancouver Island
Here’s some good news for Campbell River and the rest of Vancouver Island – we’re in a pretty different situation than the Interior and northeastern BC.
We’ve had wetter-than-normal conditions along the coast in May, which definitely helped keep fire risks lower.
But don’t get too comfortable just yet. The weather folks are predicting above-normal temperatures for the rest of summer, and June is looking warmer and drier than usual.
Even though we got some good spring rains, the province’s snowpack is sitting at about 61% of normal, which means less water flowing in our streams and rivers.
What’s Affecting Our Area
Snowpack: It’s better than last year (phew!), but still below normal. Less snow means less water later on and potentially drier forests.
Temperature: Environment and Climate Change Canada is calling for hotter-than-usual temperatures across much of BC this summer. More heat means forests dry out faster.
Rain: While we’ve benefited from spring showers, nobody can predict long-term precipitation patterns with much confidence. Mother Nature keeps us guessing! 🌧️
Coastal Fire Centre by the Numbers
Let’s put things in perspective: BC typically sees about 1,600 wildfires per year, with about 1,483 being the 10-year average. Roughly 42% are caused by people, and 58% by lightning strikes.
Last year was a big one – BC’s fourth largest wildfire season ever, with over 1.08 million hectares burned across the province.
The good news? The Coastal Fire Centre (that’s us!) usually sees less action than the interior regions. Our coastal location and marine climate act like a natural shield.
Right now, the Coastal Fire Centre has Category 2 and Category 3 open fire bans in place throughout most areas (except Haida Gwaii) as of May 30th.
The Big Picture
While we’re in a relatively good spot here on the coast, the northeast corner of BC is likely to see some serious fire activity again this summer, along with dry areas in the Southwestern Interior and Chilcotin regions.
What does this mean for us? Well, we might see smoky skies from distant fires, and firefighting resources could get pulled to higher-risk areas. The forecast really depends on how much rain we get in the coming weeks.
For Vancouver Island, it’s all about staying alert and being ready to roll with whatever Mother Nature throws our way.
Stay Informed and Connected
For the most up-to-date information on fire conditions, restrictions, and safety measures:
Essential Fire Information Resources:
- BC Wildfire Situation Map – Official government fire tracking, also has
mobile app via the App Store and on Google Play. - BC Fire Map – Real-time wildfire locations and status
- Fire Bans and Restrictions – Current prohibitions and regulations
While the 2025 fire season presents challenges across BC, staying informed and doing our best to prevent wildfires is the best defense!