6 forest fires burning in N.L. as fire ban implemented in St. John's area

Firefighters are on the move across the province Tuesday, getting ready to assess and battle six forest fires in eastern Newfoundland from Conception Bay South to Terra Nova.

Meanwhile, major municipalities on the Avalon Peninsula have issued bans preventing people from having open fires or lighting fire pits, charcoal barbecues and chimineas to try to prevent more fires.  

Provincial forest fire duty officer Colin Carroll says a series of lightning strikes started most of the forest fires, which sparked up after 3 p.m. Monday amid dry ground conditions and fire indexes ranging from very high to extreme.

The largest forest fire, near Lake St. John, is 50 hectares, or the equivalent of 123 football fields. It is out of control and burning near some cabins in a remote area south of Thorburn Lake.

"Last night we noticed some smoke there when our tankers were actually heading back to Gander to refuel. So we quickly got over there in a chopper and did a quick assessment, and noticed the size of the fire was big," Carroll said Tuesday.

Water bombers on red alert

Three water bombers soaked the Lake St. John fire before darkness fell to extinguish open flames, said Carroll, and 10 firefighters were on the way to the area Tuesday to douse remaining hot spots.

"Our tankers are all on red alert. One in St. John's, two in Gander, and they're ready to go if we need them," he said.

Also south of Thorburn Lake, Carroll said, are two more forest fires burning close together near some cabins. The fires cover 12 hectares, but Carroll said the risk associated with them is decreasing. 

A fire in Upper Gullies in Conception Bay South is now 90 per cent contained, Carroll said. He said that fire flared up Monday night, but was stamped out with a couple of drops from a water bomber.

The risk from that fire has now significantly decreased, said Carroll, and crews from Paddy's Pond are in the area today to continue the cleanup. 

There is a smaller, 2½-hectare fire burning near Trinity that remains out of control, even though there are no open flames. Carroll says four firefighters, a pump unit and water bomber worked on that fire Monday and staff will continue to work on hot spots Tuesday. 

A small fire in Sweet Bay on the Bonavista Peninsula is under control after being saturated by a water bomber. Carroll says the fire is along the edge of a small peninsula and has nowhere else to spread.

Carroll says Parks Canada staff in Terra Nova also controlled a small fire.

However, Carroll says he does expect some fires to flare up Tuesday if the wind picks up, and he's hoping rain forecast for Tuesday afternoon and evening will help.

"We're hopeful that we get the millimetres that we need," he said, adding they need at least five millimetres. However, there are thunderstorms forecast for parts of central Newfoundland, which could ignite more fires, but Carroll says they're watching things closely.

"If we have choppers or tankers in the air, they're always scanning the horizon and looking for any new lights and new smoke plumes," he said.

There have been 51 forest fires, burning nearly 800 hectares of land, recorded in the province so far this year, compared with 85 fires in 2021 from May to the end of September.

Fire ban, water conservation orders

The St. John's regional fire department issued a fire ban Tuesday covering St. John's, Mount Pearl and Paradise. It prohibits open fires, including ones in fire pits and chimineas. 

"Fires will start very easily, and what they will do then is they will spread very fast,"  said deputy fire chief Robert Fowler.

Fowler says they're concerned about grass and foliage igniting due to hot, dry weather. Fowler said fighting those kinds of fires is taxing for crews.

"They're working in those extreme conditions.… It's a safety issue, the exhaustion factor. It's dragging the hose up through the woods, fighting the fire, moving the brush around — you're dealing with rough terrain and uneven terrain," he said. 

Meanwhile many municipalities on the northeast Avalon issued water conservation orders  Friday that said the regional water supply for St. John's, Paradise, Mount Pearl, and Portugal Cove-St. Philip's was experiencing higher than usual demand.

The conservation order limits when people can water lawns and how they can wash vehicles. 

Summer warmer, drier in some places

David Neil, warning preparedness meteorologist for Newfoundland and Labrador, said the summer so far has been warmer, with an above-average number of days above 20 C, but no record temperatures yet.

"Much of the island came in generally a degree and a half to two and a half degrees above their normal [in June]," Neil said.  

So far in July, Neil said St. John's and Gander are on track to have an above-average number of days over 20 C, as well. 

Meanwhile Neil said last month was drier than average, with most of the province getting far less rain than usual.

So far in July, he said St. John's has received less than 17 millimetres of rain, in a month that normally sees more than 90 millimetres. However, Neil said Deer Lake, Stephenville and Goose Bay have seen nearly their normal rainfall totals already.

The forest fires in this province are burning as southern Europe is experiencing an unprecedented heat wave. Temperatures are expected to breach 40 C in the U.K. Tuesday for the first time, after the country experienced its warmest night on record.

Meanwhile, wildfires sweeping through Portugal, Spain and France have killed some people, and forced thousands of others to evacuate their homes.

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