A water bomber, originally brought back from a forest fire about 12 kilometres from Buchans and held on reserve, is now aiding the crew on the front line.
It’s the first forest fire of the season on the island. The fire is still engulfing an area about four kilometers by one kilometer, but according to Provincial Forest Fire Duty Officer Eric Young, the wind has shifted a little bit in their favour.
The fire was first spotted Wednesday afternoon outside the Hinds Lake area. At that time, the fire was only approximately half a square kilometre, but later expanded to roughly one by four square kilometers.
“It still hasn’t been contained,” said Young. “We have 13 firefighters on site, as well as two helicopters.”
He added that so far, the fire is still not threatening communities or cabins in the region, or major thickets of forest. Where the fire is active is more sparse regions of largely brush and small trees.
“Mother Nature had better bring us some rain, or we’re going to have a serious weekend,” said Young.
The weather conditions have also been a factor in the spreading of the fire.
Young said the province has been having “pretty dry” conditions, with the forest fire index ranging from moderate to extreme.
“After this, I think a large part of the province will be put on extreme,” he said.
He said that with no rain forecast for the next few days, he expects the firefighters will be trying to contain the forest fire over the weekend.
The cause of the fire is still not known. Young said an investigation will be conducted after the fire has been contained.
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The forest fire outside of Buchans has the dubious honour of being the first major blaze reported on the island, according to Provincial Forest Fire Duty Officer Eric Young.
It's also spreading.
The fire was first spotted Wednesday afternoon outside the Hinds Lake area, about 12 kilometres past Buchans. At that time, the fire was only approximately half a square kilometre in area.
Since then, the blaze has expanded to an area roughly one by four square kilometers.
"It still hasn't been contained," said Young. "We have 13 firefighters on site, as well as two helicopters. The water bomber is being held on reserve until later on, and we're going to have a look at the fire with the ground crews. If the conditions warrant, we may release the water bomber on it later on today."
So far, the fire is not burning in major thickets of forest, but in areas of largely brush and small trees up in the barrens area.
"Mother Nature better bring us some rain, or we're going to have a serious weekend," said Young.
The weather conditions have also been a factor in the spreading of the fire.
Young said the province has been having "pretty dry" conditions, with the forest fire index ranging from moderate to extreme.
"After this, I think a large part of the province will be put on extreme," he said.
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