White Rock Fire Chief Ed Wolfe said a recent blaze on the east side hillside could have easily turned into a major fire – and provides a warning of how quickly flames can spread in hot, dry summer weather.

The July 18 fire, at a residence at 838 Lee St. – reported at 2:46 p.m. – produced a column of smoke visible to many across the city.

While quickly controlled by firefighters, the fire – which Wolfe said appeared to be the result of a briefly unattended tealight candle in a piece of pottery – resulted in injury to one person who was hospitalized with second-degree burns to the arms and torso.

It also destroyed two backyard sheds and their contents and threatened neighbouring properties, posing what Wolfe described as a very real risk of fire sweeping over the hillside.

"When firefighters arrived, several large trees on the property were fully involved, with an area of some 50 to 60 feet of flame," he said.

"And we had a secondary fire – an ember blew over to a house on Parker Street, which set fire to the front of the house, causing damage to the siding and blowing out a couple of windows, but that was soon put out."

That's one of the reasons that quick reporting of fires is vital – and never more so than in summer, when vegetation and wooden surfaces are tinder-dry, he said.

"We typically get a bit of wind here in White Rock, and once embers get up in the air and moving around, a fire can quickly spread to neighbouring houses."

Wolfe said he was well pleased with the speed and efficiency White Rock Fire Rescue firefighters demonstrated in response to the July 18 blaze.

"We had four (trucks and other firefighting vehicles) out, and 16 firefighters altogether," he said.

"The crew did an exceptional job of confining the main fire to the the sheds and the trees."

But Wolfe agreed that the incident highlighted the need for residents to be extra vigilant this summer, not only in their handling of fire and reducing fire hazards around the home, but also in reporting fires or suspected fires as quickly as possible.