A small wildfire and power outage in British Columbia, Canada, started on July 30 due to a fish falling from the sky.

The fish caused wildfires in Canada. Photo: Ashcroft Fire Brigade
The fire was brought under control and extinguished with the help of the Ashcroft Fire Brigade fire brigade and the help of farm owners and employees of the British Columbia Hydroelectric and Electricity Authority, a Canadian power company.

Fire officials investigated and determined that the fire was not caused by carelessness on the part of the camper or any faulty equipment, but by a fish.

Officials believe that a hawk bird carrying a fish in the air has let go of its prey halfway. As a result, the fish hit the power line, creating sparks that fell into the dry grass and caused a fire, which spread about 4,000m2.

The nearest river, where the hawk likely caught its prey, is about 3.2km from the scene of the fire.

Officials are still unclear why the bird released the fish, but there is at least one theory.

The Ashcroft Fire Brigade suspects the size of the fish combined with the sun on July 30 “may have made the bird quite tired and dropped its prey”.

As a result of the fire, a temporary power outage was recorded in Ashcroft, a village of more than 1,500 people, about 338km northeast of Vancouver.

As for the hawk, the fire brigade reported, “our main suspect was not injured in the incident and is still flying freely.”