# Source note — Okanagan mayors wildfire-penalty post

Source lead: https://www.facebook.com/share/1HDvcgxU4A/?mibextid=wwXIfr
Resolved Facebook URL: `https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1047282948041039`
Captured: 2026-08-19

Facebook was browser-visible only; yt-dlp failed because this was a photo post, not a supported downloadable video. The post appeared under Mayor Tom Dyas and said 46 per cent of wildfires since 2021 were human-caused, argued reckless/deliberate actions can put lives, homes, businesses and communities at risk, and said Central Okanagan mayors, Westbank First Nation Chief Robert Louie and Regional District Chair Loyal Wooldridge would push the Province for harsher penalties. The attached graphic cited Castanet and Mayor Tom Dyas on August 18, 2026.

## Official sources captured

- B.C. Fire Prohibitions and Restrictions page, including current fire-centre prohibition table and offences/fines wording.
- B.C. Wildfire Act, including section 43 offences and section 27 administrative penalties/cost recovery.
- B.C. Wildfire Regulation, including administrative penalty amounts and regulation offences.
- B.C. Wildfire Averages page, including 10-year average and annual human-caused/lightning-caused table.
- B.C. wildfire statistics and dashboard pages.
- BC Wildfire Service blog front page, showing current/prevention bulletins.

## Editorial treatment

The policy demand is reported as a mayoral/political request. Existing provincial law already contains tickets, administrative penalties, court fines, possible jail, and cost recovery. The 46-per-cent statement is preserved as the Facebook claim, but the official BCWS annual table captured by BCFires does not support a simple provincewide 46% figure for 2021-2024.