Rain in Shelburne County allowing crews to attack fire more directly
CBC
Crews fighting a fire in the Barrington Lake area of Nova Scotia's Shelburne County finished the weekend "with smiles on their face at the end of the day" thanks to a heavy dousing of rain, says a Department of Natural Resources official.
The fire, which has been burning since May 27, is still out of control and covers an area of 24,980 hectares, or about 250 square kilometres.
But Scott Tingley, the director of forest protection for the Department of Natural Resources, said Monday the rain has allowed firefighters to move from a more indirect approach of battling the flames to a direct approach.
He told the CBC's Information Morning that before the rain began, when conditions were tinder-dry, temperatures high and the fire was dangerous to be close to, crews were building fire breaks to try to slow the spread of the blaze.
Now that the fire is starting to cool down, crews are working on the fire perimeter, removing anything that could fuel the flames, patrolling and identifying potentially problematic areas.
Tingley said the status of the fire will remain out of control until officials are confident there are no lingering hotspots that could flare up when the weather warms up again.
In addition to the rain that fell throughout the weekend in the area, 15 to 25 millimetres are expected during the day Monday, with another five to 10 millimetres on Monday night and two to four millimetres expected on Tuesday, according to the Environment Canada forecast.
Other fires outside Halifax are now under control.
Some residents of Shelburne County are still under an evacuation order, while others have been permitted to return home.
The Lake Road fire, just south of the town of Shelburne, is under control at 114 hectares. It has not grown since Saturday and some residents who'd been evacuated have been allowed to return to their homes.
Meanwhile, the fire near Lower East Pubnico in Yarmouth County covers 138 hectares, and is also under control.
On Sunday afternoon, the province lifted restrictions on travel and activities in the woods in all areas except for Shelburne County and anywhere evacuation orders are in place, effective at midnight.
Activities that are now permitted include hiking, camping, fishing and the use of vehicles in the woods. The provincewide burn ban remains in place and the fine for a violation is $25,000.
On Monday and Tuesday, residents will be able to book appointments for non-urgent health care at the Barrington Community Health Clinic, where a mobile clinic will be operating, anytime from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.