Eastern Shore wildfire jumps significantly in size to 1,700 hectares

Eastern Shore wildfire jumps significantly in size to 1,700 hectares

Mandatory evacuation remains in place for 22-kilometre stretch of Mooseland Road as dry conditions persist

N.S. officials give update as wildfire burns out of control on Eastern Shore

An out-of-control wildfire on Nova Scotia's Eastern Shore has jumped significantly in size, with provincial officials reporting that it now covers 1,700 hectares, as residents asked to evacuate their homes anxiously await further news.

The fire, which is located about 100 kilometres east of Halifax, has grown by more than five times the size it was Thursday evening, when it reached 300 hectares and triggered a mandatory evacuation order for a 22-kilometre stretch of Mooseland Road, from civic address 4315 down to Highway 7.

Nova Scotia officials are expected to give an update on the status of the wildfire around 2 p.m. Friday.

Penny Smith, who lives in the area, says she watched as the fire escalated by the minute on Thursday.

“Around ten to nine, I got the alert on my phone to evacuate,” she said Friday, noting that she and her husband took both their vehicles and fled to a motel in Dartmouth, N.S.

“It’s just devastating at this point. I have no idea if I’ve even got a home and have nobody to contact.”

On Friday morning, Jim Rudderham, director of fleet and wildfire management for the Department of Natural Resources, said two fixed-wing water bombers from Nova Scotia will be in use today, along with two water bombers from Newfoundland and Labrador, and multiple helicopters.

“Every tool in the toolbox will help us,” said Rudderham. “This morning, the weather is a little calmer, and we can get some heavy aircraft on the fire, and our crews as well, to start tightening those boundaries. It’ll certainly help.”

Crews from various local volunteer fire departments are also assisting, with support from Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency and the DNR.

The evacuation order was issued after the fire crossed Mooseland Road, forcing Nova Scotia Power to cut electricity to active lines in the area.

“Nova Scotia Power will have to assess that once they get in there safely, but that’s the reason,” Rudderham said. “It is an active fire, and we are very hopeful and confident about where it’s going, but we have to be sure as well.”

According to a Thursday estimate from the Halifax Regional Municipality, the evacuation order affects between 100-150 people.

“It was pretty hectic,” said Jacob Prest, who lives in the area. "Mostly with people … who don’t live here that have senior parents, responding quickly and coming out to get their parents.”

He said firefighters came to his door to inform him of the evacuation order last night, but after talking with officials, he's decided to stay for now, as the fire appears to be tracking in the opposite direction of his home.

"We have our go bags packed and ready if the wind changes,” he said.

For those with homes in the area who are away or living outside the province, it’s been painful to watch from afar.

"I’m feeling extremely helpless, being so far away, and just kind of sitting and watching to see if all my childhood memories … are just going to be gone overnight,” Melissa Charalambous said Friday from her home in Ontario.

Charalambous owns a cottage, which once belonged to her late father, near Mooseland Road.

When she heard the news that an evacuation order was issued, she quickly contacted a neighbour who was able to retrieve two irreplaceable items from her home: her father's ashes and the logbooks he used when he worked at sea.

“[I'm] so relieved," she said. "At the end of the day, at least I have those two things.”

The fire began on Wednesday, and grew amid dry, hot conditions on Thursday.

While there was 4.6 millimetres of rain in the area overnight, Rudderham said the forest remains dangerously dry.

"I suspect that the fire last night probably laid down pretty good and didn't do much movement at all, but as the morning progresses and the day heats up, it will start to move again."

Rain in the forecast for Sunday

Crews are keeping a close eye on the forecast, which calls for rain on Sunday.

"We live on the weather," Rudderham said. "We watch it. We listen to it ... so we're very hopeful that that rain does materialize on Sunday."

With wildfire season in full swing, Rudderham urged all rural Nova Scotians to be prepared to evacuate at a moment's notice.

"You have to be prepared. You never know what might come," he said.

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With files from Information Morning Nova Scotia