Nova Scotia

DND explosive team called in after Burnside fire

A brush fire in a wooded area of Burnside in Dartmouth prompted the Department of National Defence to dispatch its explosive ordnance disposal team.

Fire started near shack in woods

RAW Burnside explosion

11 years ago
Duration 0:24
There has been an explosion in shack in the woods behind Mosher Drive.

A brush fire in a wooded area in Dartmouth prompted the Department of National Defence to dispatch its explosive ordnance disposal team.

Crews were on scene, fighting the stubborn fire in Burnside. Firefighters responded after a shack exploded in the woods behind Mosher Drive around 10:30 a.m.

The fire has since been put out.

"There was a fire at Canadian Forces Ammunition Depot Bedford back in the forties and because of that fire there was an explosion and some munitions were strewn through the area. It’s a legacy site where there are known unexploded devices throughout the grounds," said Mike Bonin, a public affairs officer with the Department of National Defence in Halifax.

A man who calls himself Snowman told CBC News he has squatted in the woods for the past 15 years in a makeshift shack. He said he was out having breakfast at the time of the explosion.

He said he has a propane tank near his shack, but had no idea what caused the blast.

Snowman said he has nowhere else to go.

At one point the flames could be seen from the Halifax side of the harbour.