Fire bans in effect for Kitchener, Cambridge and townships

Rural townships in Waterloo Region have issued an open burn ban, effective immediately.

The townships of Wellesley, Wilmot, Woolwich and North Dumfries announced the open burn ban in a joint statement on Thursday.

As a result, open-air burning is suspended except for cooking fires in a contained fire pit.

Cooking fires still need to be consistently monitored and should be extinguished afterwards.

“Failure to comply with the ban could result in charges and/or fees for service if the Fire Department is required to extinguish an unauthorized burn,” said the joint statement.

Current fire permits within the townships are suspended and no new permits will be issued until the ban is lifted.

If the hot and dry conditions don’t let up, a full fire ban that includes cooking fires could be issued.

Meanwhile, both Kitchener and Cambridge have issued temporary fire bans as of Aug. 8 at 4 p.m.

A joint relief from those cities notes that backyard fires and open burns are not permitted in Kitchener and Cambridge, citing concerns over dry conditions and a lack of significant rainfall in the forecast.

That means backyard fires and open burns are not permitted, while no new open burn permits will be issued or approved until further notice – similar to what’s been seen in the townships.

Anyone found to be hosting unauthorized fires may be subjected to fines. In addition, any city bylaw exclusions that allow fires for the purposes of cooking food are also suspended.

The fire ban in effect for Kitchener and Cambridge is expected to remain in place until further notice.