A Saanich grass fire has been contained after it sent plumes of smoke into the sky and shut down a residential street Thursday, fire officials say.
But officials are asking residents in the area with respiratory problems to stay indoors as the smoke subsides.
Police and fire crews responded to reports of a brush fire in Camrose Park at around 3:30 p.m.
Firefighters worked quickly to contain the fire, which temporarily shut down Maplewood Road to all traffic between Camrose Crescent and Cook Street.
Wind gusts of more than 30 km/h complicated their efforts, as flames came within 15 metres of nearby homes – while smoke spread quickly to neighbouring areas.
“It’s been a really challenging fire due to the wind,” Saanich Fire Captain Rich Pala told CTV News.
Reports poured in on Twitter that the smoke could be seen and smelled as far away as the University of Victoria.
@CTVNewsVI @uvic yup, smoke is blowing accross UVIC past the @UVIC_GSS
— Stacy Ch (@stacychappel) June 11, 2015
There were no immediate reports of any damage to any nearby structures, but the fire scorched a 300-square-foot area of the park.
Pala said a tree line between the park and nearby homes obstructed the fire from doing any major damage, and that it could’ve been much worse if the fire got into the trees. The source of the fire is not yet known.
A Facebook follower sent the video below showing the extent of the smoke blowing over Saanich.
#Breaking: Apparent grass fire near Cedar Hill Golf Course in Saanich has shut down the 3300-block of Maplewood Road.Read more: http://bit.ly/1I7GKn7A Facebook fan sent us this video showing the extent of smoke. No visible flames reported yet. More to come.
Posted by CTV Vancouver Island on Thursday, June 11, 2015
