A grass fire at the edge of Trans Mountain’s terminal site in Burnaby could have been worse if not for the quick work by the fire department.
Burnaby firefighters were called out before noon Wednesday to the north end of the property below Burnaby Mountain Parkway to deal with a grass fire.
Assistant fire chief Barry Mawhinney said the fire grew to about 20 by 20 metres in size, but was put out by crews within 10 minutes.
He said it appears the fire was caused by a lawnmower hitting a rock, which then caused a spark.
“It’s not something that would happen normally, but with the dry weather, a rock hitting the metal blade could cause a spark, it’s not unlikely,” the assistant fire chief said.
While the fire was doused quickly, Mawhinney said it could have been worse if not for the quick action by crews.
“If we hadn’t got there quickly and extinguished it, there was a good chance of it getting into the trees and stuff that border the property,” he said.
There were media reports that Trans Mountain employees were evacuated from the site, but both the company and fire department said that wasn’t the case.
Mawhinney said when he arrived there were some people gathered at the gate, while the company’s emergency crews were on scene.
Trans Mountain also sent a statement to the NOW about the incident.
“This morning, crews reported a small grass fire near the water reservoir, at the north end of our Burnaby Terminal,” read the statement. “Burnaby Fire Department responded and quickly extinguished the fire. The grass fire did not impact our pipeline or terminal operations and we continue to monitor the situation. The cause of the grass fire is currently being investigated.”
