Crews poised to 'attack' historic wildfire in Shelburne County after rainfall
CBC
If the power or data on your device is low, get your wildfire updates on CBC Lite. It's our low-bandwidth, text-only website.
Much-needed rainfall in Shelburne County is allowing firefighters to "attack" a massive wildfire that has been burning out of control for nearly a week.
Dave Rockwood, a spokesperson with Nova Scotia's Department of Natural Resources, said early Saturday the rain has allowed crews to go on the offensive and "get on the fire line with a higher degree of safety."
"I will caution that this rain does not yet mean we are out of the woods, but we are now able to have our ground crews kick it into high gear and get into these places we have not been able to set foot on in days to kick some ash," Rockwood said in an email sent early Saturday.
The fire burning in the Barrington Lake area remained about 23,015 hectares in size, or 230-square kilometres, as of Saturday morning.
It's considered to be the largest wildfire ever recorded in Nova Scotia.
DNR said it has 90 firefighters on site Saturday, along with 40 volunteer municipal firefighters and a crew of 18 from Newfoundland and Labrador. There is one water bomber and five helicopters on scene.
Rockwood, who is based at the command post in Shelburne County, told CBC Radio's Weekend Mornings later in the morning that crews in the area were pleased to get the rain overnight.
"We got a lot of smiles down here ... I'm not sure how much [rain] we got, but our crews are checking on that today," he said.
The area is expected to get more rain, which could help as the wind picks up.
"But with the increase in the humidity, we're going to see less intensity, so we're not anticipating any great run like we've seen over the initial — I can't even remember — but a number of days," Rockwood said.
He added that the area will be getting more support in the coming days. He said a group of American firefighters have crossed the Canadian border and should arrive sometime this weekend to help, with more arriving Monday.
A smaller fire, estimated to be about 114 hectares as of Saturday morning, is also burning out of control near Lake Road, which is within a kilometre or two of the Town of Shelburne. Several evacuations have been ordered in the area.
Another fire in Yarmouth County also continues to burn. It was about 163 hectares on Saturday morning.
All public schools on P.E.I. are closed Friday and thousands of Maritime Electric customers are without power as strong winds create hazardous travel conditions across the province.
Prince Rupert, B.C., residents are celebrating the holidays this year with coastal flair.
In the four years Chelsey Simmonds has worked at the Eva Rothwell Centre, she has seen the need increase every year at the centre’s community food pantry.
CBC is once again looking to make the holiday season kind in Windsor-Essex.
Acute Care Alberta has extended its contract for another year with a private surgical facility at the centre of probes into health procurement and contracting.
As food bank use continues to climb across the province, front-line workers in Thunder Bay, Ont., are working to improve both food security and education.
More ads could soon be coming to Toronto’s subway system.
The driver wanted in connection with a fatal hit and run on Highway 401 earlier this week has been identified, police say.
There are mixed feelings about the proposed Grays Bay road and port project, among people who live in nearby communities.
WARNING: This story details allegations of child abuse and includes graphic content.
Provincial police in Lambton County have charged a 23-year-old man with second degree murder following a death investigation that began this past Saturday.
The Newfoundland and Labrador government is forming a working group to tackle what it calls systemic issues in the justice system, but answers or solutions could still be months away.
A woman has pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death in a 2024 fatal hit and run in Truro, N.S., where the victim was dragged down the street, a case that went unsolved for more than six months.