Delta’s fire department now has a new piece of equipment to help stop wildfires from spreading onto homes and businesses.
The department has recently taken possession of a technical trailer that was converted into a specialized sprinkler protection unit designed to help fight interface fires.
A memo to council from Fire Chief Paul Scholfield noted that in recent years increasingly common interface fires, such as the 2016 Burns Bog fire, highlighted the challenges of protecting industrial and residential structures when fires jump from wildland or other interface areas into the built environment.
The B.C. government has also been investing heavily in wildfire prevention and community preparedness and recommended that communities invest in self-protection measures such as sprinkler systems, he said.
Delta's new protection unit will provide Delta firefighters with an important tool to respond quickly and effectively to protect homes and businesses in vulnerable interface areas, said Scholfield, adding that crews will begin training on the unit immediately in conjunction with their annual wildland training.
The unit is used to dampen roofs and structures to form a wet line and prevent wildfires from moving into built environments.
A previous report also pointed to the 2016 bog fire that quickly jumped the highway into the adjacent Tilbury industrial area as well as a fire at a Surrey townhouse complex two years ago that was fanned by winds across Scott Road into Delta.
Costing $120,000, the unit is also known as a wildfire protection trailer.
Delta fire department photos
