PM pledges aid for British Columbia fires

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 5 (UPI) -- The scope of damage from British Columbia's ongoing wildfires is severe enough to merit federal aid, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said.

Speaking in Vancouver, Harper said the fires that have some 5,000 people in evacuation centers qualify under the federal Disaster Relief Act for assistance, the Canwest News Service reported Wednesday.

Provincial Premier Gordon Campbell said he would deal with financial aid when the fires were out.

"We think it's very important for us to deal with the people, the personnel and the property first," said Campbell.

Since April 1, some 2,238 fires have burned 175,000 acres in British Columbia, and 807 fires were active as of Tuesday, the report said.

In response to pleas for help from other provinces and countries, officials said Australia and New Zealand had dispatched 30 fire specialists to help battle the ongoing fires.