Update on Wildfires, June 9
The Barrington Lake wildfire in Shelburne County is still classified as “being held.”
Being held means it is not moving, but is still not under control. Also:
- it covers 23,525 hectares (about 235 square kilometres); the reported size is expected to fluctuate in the coming days as firefighters reach more remote areas on foot and get precise GPS measurements
- about 110 firefighters from the Department of Natural Resources and Renewables (DNRR) are responding; volunteer and municipal firefighters are on call
- air resources include three helicopters.
Evacuation information for Shelburne fires is available at:
Fires in the following areas are under control and DNRR firefighters are doing mop up:
- Lake Road, Municipality of the District of Shelburne
- Pubnico, Yarmouth County
- Westwood Hills, Tantallon
- Hammonds Plains.
Mop up means firefighters start at the perimeter of the fire and advance toward the centre in a grid pattern to systematically extinguish hot spots. Tactics include looking and smelling for smoke, digging up hot spots and dousing them with water. Depending on the size of the fire, mop up can take days or weeks.
Up-to-date information on HRM response efforts is available at https://www.halifax.ca/ and by following @hfxgov on Twitter.
Quick Facts:
- there is a provincewide ban on open fires; the fine is $25,000 for breaking the burn ban
- restrictions on travel and activities in the woods remain in Shelburne County and anywhere evacuation orders are in place
- people are asked to please remain away from all wildfire areas
- people should not operate drones over active forest fires; drones can interfere with the suppression effort and pose a danger to aircraft and first responders
Additional Resources:
Information related to the wildfires is available at: https://novascotia.ca/alerts/