Image: Derrick Kramer, used with permission / Chilliwack River Valley resident Derrick Kramer says he and another neighbour extinguished a potential forest fire near Riverside Campground Wednesday morning (July 17) in the Chilliwack River Valley. Kramer was on his way into Chilliwack when he stopped to check on a homeless camp near Riverside and noticed that someone had burned a trailer. When he returned with fire pumps, he says the fire had started into the underbrush of the forest.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Fire in the Chilliwack River Valley

Chilliwack River Valley residents douse trailer fire near Riverside Campground that almost spread to nearby forest

Jul 18, 2024 | 8:28 AM

CHILLIWACK — In what could have been a much worse scenario if left unattended, Chilliwack River Valley resident Derrick Kramer says he and another neighbour, Brian Smith, extinguished a potential forest fire near Riverside Campground Wednesday morning (July 17) in the Chilliwack River Valley.

Kramer reached out to Fraser Valley Today just before noon Wednesday to say he was on his way into Chilliwack when he stopped to check on a homeless camp near Riverside and noticed that someone had started a trailer fire.

“It was mostly burnt, so I ran back to my cabin and grabbed our firefighting equipment pump,” Kramer said. “By the time I got back, the fire had started into the underbrush of the forest. It burnt a tree 50 feet or more up.”

Image: Derrick Kramer, used with permission / Debris from a trailer fire Wednesday morning.

Video and pictures shared by Kramer depict him and fellow Post Creek resident Brian Smith spraying down the trailer and the surrounding debris Wednesday morning.

Think of Me impaired driving campaign

Public agencies in Abbotsford team up for 'Think of Me' impaired driving initiative

34m ago

Heat pump scam

RCMP warn public about door-to-door heat pump scam in the Fraser Valley

1h ago

Matt Petgrave makes crowdfunding appeal, calls death of Adam Johnson a 'tragic accident'

2h ago

Kramer says the trailer did not have a license plate on it, leading to the suspicion it may have been stolen.

“It seems suspicious that the license plate was off the trailer,” he said.

Image: Derrick Kramer

There is a ban on open fires throughout British Columbia that took effect Friday, July 12. BC Wildfire Service says this prohibition is being implemented to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety.

In this case, Kramer and his neighbour were in the right place at the right time, trying to protect the natural beauty of the Chilliwack River Valley that has been sporadically marred by illegal encampments and other unsightly messes.

“If we didn’t go back with the fire pumps, it would’ve caught the forest on fire,” said Kramer. “It’s just the right thing to do if you have the equipment.”

On a broader scale, Kramer has been actively engaging with regional and provincial personnel about an evacuation plan for the Chilliwack River Valley in case of a raging wildfire or other natural disaster, and says the trailer fire highlights the possibility that people could be trapped in the one-way-in, one-way-out Chilliwack Lake Road corridor if a large-scale wildfire occurred in the area.