RCMP find no criminality in cause of Upper Tantallon wildfire, documents say

The investigation into a wildfire that destroyed dozens of homes and led to millions of dollars in damage in the Halifax area has determined there is no criminality in the cause of the blaze.

That is according to documents obtained through an access to information request that has been provided to CBC News.

The fire started in Upper Tantallon, N.S., on May 28 and grew nearly 800 hectares to the surrounding neighbourhoods of Hammonds Plains and Pockwock. Thousands of people were evacuated and more than 200 homes and buildings were lost.

A member of one of the communities affected by the blaze filed the request and shared more than 50 pages with CBC News. He declined to be interviewed.

"No information to suggest the cause was due to negligence or criminal matter," said a document from the RCMP labelled as a final report from Sept. 11, 2023. The status of the report said there is insufficient evidence to proceed. 

An investigation by Nova Scotia Department of Resources and Renewables was in progress at that time, the document said.

Initial response

The documents obtained through access to information include written testimonies from the police officers who initially responded to the fire on the afternoon of May 28.

A brush fire that began in the Westwood neighbourhood grew rapidly, forcing first responders to go door to door to make sure residents were evacuating. 

A video of the fire on Snapchat that suggested how the fire started was reviewed as part of the investigation, but police couldn't determine the location of the video or who was in it.

"Therefore it would be impossible to determine if this was actually the cause of the main wildfire in Westwood," said a document dated June 1, 2023.

In a statement to CBC News, the RCMP confirmed they've found no evidence to lay criminal charges in connection to the cause of the fire.

"We closed our file in December and communicated this information to the minister of Natural Resources and Renewables, as the organization in charge of the investigation. We have been in contact with them and remain ready to help them, if necessary," Const. Dominic Laflamme said in an email to Radio-Canada. His comment was translated from French to English. 

Transparency concerns

Halifax regional council also found out about the RCMP investigation being finished from the resident who filed the access to information request, one councillor said. 

"I think what's really important here is that the RCMP clearly did not feel that there was any need to communicate to the municipality," said Pam Lovelace, who represents the neighbourhoods affected the most by the fire. 

"That's concerning," she said. "We have seen over the last few years a lack of transparency, a lack of communication."

 The issue around RCMP transparency will be brought up at council's next meeting on Jan. 9, she said.  

Lovelace also said laying charges against someone for causing the fire wouldn't change anything at this point. She said there should be more focus on improving public education to help prevent fires in the future.

"What we need is system-wide change to help people understand that burning during a burn ban is the worst possible thing that you can do. People have got to be informed better."