Call for caution SOPFEU invites the population of certain areas of the North Shore to be on alert

Due to the prevailing weather conditions, la Société de protection des forêts contre le feu (SOPFEU), is issuing a call for caution to the population of the North Shore, mainly in the MRCs of Minganie, Golf Saint-Laurent and Caniapiacau (Fermont and Sherfferville areas). The hot and dry weather conditions over the next three days will increase the fire danger.

When SOPFEU issues a call for caution, it means that the forecasted conditions will not only be conductive to the outbreak of new fires but will also favour high intensity fires.

The protection organization reminds us that it is not recommended to have open fires (campfires, waste burning, etc.) when the fire danger varies from high to extreme, or when winds blow at more than 20 km/h. For those who enjoy open fires, SOPFEU strongly recommends using a fireplace equipped with a spark arrestor with openings no larger than one centimeter.

When the fire danger is high, SOPFEU asks ATV riders to avoid the backcountry. Riding off-trail allows contact between dry brush and hot engine parts and can result in a wildfire. It is also important to remember that cigarette butts thrown on the ground can start forest fires.

There are currently no active fires in the Intensive Protection Zone (IPZ) and one in the Northern Zone (NZ). Since the beginning of the wildlife season, 258 fires have been ignited, affecting 207.6 hectares (ha) of forest in the IPZ, while 4 fires have burned 12,997.4 ha of forest in the NZ.