BEAVER LAKE
Citizen Team Sees Flames Destroy Forest
(HotT dry weather � hottest since 1942 � threatens the Priftcc George area with a forest fire problem which could reach the serious proportions of the tragic 1958 situation. To report on the back-breaking pace fire fighters are selling in attempts to heul the fire a Citizen reporter-photographer team � Barry Hnmclin and Hal Vandervoort � Tuesday was flown into the Heaver Lake area where a 1,000-acrc blaze is burning. Following is their report.)
� � � By BARRY MAMELIN Citizen Staff Reporter
From Ihe air the forest is a lush carpet of green, broken here and there by lakes and swamps � and now by an ugly black scar of charred timber. This is Hit; Great Beaver Lake fire. Lone wisps of smoke spiral,-------------------
A THING OF BEAUTY AND A THING OF TRAGEDY-THE GREAT BEAVER LAKE FOREST FIRE
lazily
ie brilliant blue sky
from the ruins and the hot sun beats down.
A fire guard, a slash of bare earth wrapped around the still burning area like a snake, cuts off the fire from valuable stands of tall spruce.
But on the ground, everything assumes a different perspective. Trees tower majestically into the sky and trout leap and frolic in the lake.
It's a scone of untouched
b('iHtf*r--nti'tif'.riTii.....swt-he�rtear-
by charred and denuded trees.
Our first stop on the tour, of
On One Hand � Trees, Trout
Soon it's timn for us to jump into a forestry vehicle fur a tour of "Ihe front."
�Uiai a few hundred feet from the- camp we ran into our first lnirned-out area, a 'stark and grim contrast to the proud trees we had just left.
The truck follows the winding fireguard, sending billowing clouds of dust over green and charred trees.
Camp No. 2 is a small camp set in a burned-out area of the forest, tin1 first camp established by fire fighting crews, once abandoned because the fire licked loo close.
Here we stop, talk, while to the south of us two separate
On the Other �Black V/aste
Suddenly the plane darts out (i1 the air and swoops low over the camp. It skids around in a light circle and comes 1> a c k, oven lower this time.
The trio has spoiled something, and soon we do, too.
Less than a quarter of a mile away a thick column of dirty smoke is feeling its way into the sky. Another "hot spot," but closer this lime.
Without waiting for instructions two "cats" start cutting In towards the fire. And the smoke gets thicker and thicker.
Ranger Pearce and 1 walked down the fire guard to get si glimpse of the blaze, On both sides of us patches of fire burn, In front of us the smoke .yets thicker . . . the fire is now ofi
'lie other side of the guard. Trouble!
The two cats keep fighting their way through the timber, hoping to throw up a guard around the outbreak and stop it from jumping a creek as well as the guard;
A third tractor lumbers up to starl working from the other side. Men with power saws follow behind. Their task�to widen the natural guard around the creek.
Assistant ranger Pete Norman, Mel Pearson and Frank Pearce, Dennis MacDonald and I watch the blaze. The forest service men arc confident they can catch the blaze�if the playful breeze slays quiet.
(Continued on Page 3)
Now Hear This...
Popular PG Hotel co-manager Lou Simkin is clue this fall to end his career as one of this town's most eligible bachelors. The gal is llcnda Arbour, who said "Yes" last night ... In spite of our spiel about etiquette on the water, particularly as regards driving boats too dose to swimmers, there was a number of close calls last eve on Six Mile Lake. One of the offenders of Shipping Act rules was, of all people, an off-duty Mbuntie . . .
Nice to see all the paving work going on in town. Looks like Garvin is keeping his election promise . . �
Wonder if RCMP are going to wait till somebody gets hurt or killed before enforcing the dou
ble line no crossing regulation on Victoria between Fifteenth and Seventeenth . . . Annual Legion picnic at Fort George Park Sunday will starl off with children's races at 1 p.m. and all veterans and their families are looking forward to a great afternoon, as this event always turns out to be ... While on the subject, we commend to the Legion executive the fourth paragraph of the fourth editorial in the Aug. 9 edition of The Vancouver Province. It would be a bit difficult for an objector to duplicate the feat of the Victory Square critic, but the boys can easily take action which would make this human fly technique unnecessary . . .
The Only Daily Newspaper Serving North-Central British Columbia
Phone LOgan 4-2441
Vol. 4; No. 155
PRINCE GEORGE, BRITISH COLUMBIA, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 10, 1960
7c a Copy
11Y CAHRIl-'tl $l.!i -r Polls will-,,be open fronf 8 aim. to tf p.m. �'Daylight Saying/Time JnJthe Sept. ,12 provincial veie*fion, says Ch'lc� Kleetorai Officer F. H. Hurley.
Times have been set despite references in the Election Act
to Ihe polling hours being standard tim^, he says.
The attorney-general's clc-. par}nie,nt,l6ojved--into the question Several \ years ago and found the Election Act reference superseded by provisions of the Daylight Saving Act and the Interpretation Act.
Strachan Sets Says CCF
VANCOUVER sen � An elec- I a 40-hour week by law and in-tion platform combining public crease minimum wages. Civil ownership of power and tele- servants would have bargaining phone service with private for- rights, est development was distributed Mr. Strachan will starl a speak-to all CCF candidates Tuesday ing lour of l)lc provj,KT llcxt hs party leader Robert Strachan Tuesday, said:
IAJJ5 OUST U.S. ATTACHE ;:
LONDON (Reuters) � The air altache of the United States Embassy in Moscow has been told to leave the Soviet Union "for carrying out activities incompatible with his status as a diplomat" the Soviet news agency Tass said today.
! BULLETIN
ROBERT STRACHAN
. . . "we're ready"
"We're ready to take the field."
Mr. Strachan arrived here for
meetings with campaign officials
in preparation for the Sept. 12
provincial election.
The CCF program was drawn at the 1959 convention and ratified in April.
INTEGRATE POWER
The platform pledges integration of all power sources under the B.C. Power Commission with development of the Columbia immediately. Exports to the U.S. would be on a reciprocal basis only.
Medical as well as hospital bill protection is promised through a provincial plan providing chronic and improved mental health and preventative service. Out-patient wings at all general hospitals would offer free X-ray service.
Drug addicts and alcoholics would be cared for, school taxes gradually reduced.
A CCF government would repeal the Trade Unions Act, set
Hearing
VICTORIA (CP)�The Public Utilities Commission today ordered a public hearing |n Vancouver Sept. Ii to deal with the Pacific Northern Railway.
The commission said the PNR ". . . has engaged in, or is about to engage in, construction of a railway M'ithoul first obtaining a certificate of public convenience and necessity."
It said the hearing was ". . . to give the company an opportunity of showing cause why the PUC should not proceed to make such an order and prescribe such terms and conditions as may see just and reasonable in the premises and in harmony with the PUC Act and of discussing the content of such order should the commission decide to make it."
The PUC order today followed a decision July 5 in which it cancelled hearings on the railway because it said the PNR wasn't ready to proceed with an application.
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