The rain is badly needed here.A large fire has been raging near Halifax since yesterday with lots of houses being destroyed or damaged and lots of people being displaced.
'An intense, wind-swept forest fire on the outskirts of Halifax Thursday destroyed homes, forced the evacuation of area residents and wrecked scores of trees.
The fire started in the early afternoon behind the Roachs Pond ball diamond in Spryfield. By 4:30 p.m., it was still out of control and had moved to the York Redoubt and Fergusons Cove district.
At least two houses were destroyed, according to early reports from municipal officials. A number of other homes were severely damaged. By 9 p.m. eight homes were very heavily damaged and 10 homes had lesser degrees of damage, fire officials said.
NEED INFORMATION?
Go to www.halifax.ca/emo/alert.html
Hundreds of residents were victimized by the disaster.
According to Halifax Regional Municipality’s website, 20 streets were either closed or had homes on them evacuated. The Canadian Red Cross said that close to 330 homes in the Herring Cove Road and Fergusons Cove area were evacuated.
Police said they would be patrolling the evacuated areas overnight.
Among emergency responders on the scene were municipal and provincial firefighters, Halifax Regional Police, EHS paramedics, the RCMP and Canadian Red Cross.
Fire officials couldn’t provide a cause or point of origin, but the blaze is believed to have started from a hot spot left from a fire that hit the Spryfield area Wednesday.
A stubborn wind fanned the flames and sent the fire southward.
One resident who assumed he lost his home was Michael Smith. When he left his Fortress Drive home, the front and back lawns were burning.
"I thought I might not get out of these flames," Mr. Smith said.
He managed to grab a couple of home computers before fleeing.
Mr. Smith’s wife, Chigaya, said she and her husband were frustrated by the lack of information from the municipality.
"We just want to find out if we have a home left," she said.
Bernard and Angus Lethbridge were out fishing when the fire forced the two grandfathers to run for their lives.
"It was nasty," said Angus Lethbridge. "When we seen the flames come over top of the trees, we took off. We ran out of the woods."
Bernard has asthma and wanted to get away from the thick, acrid smoke.
He and Angus said they could see trees burning and figured the black smoke they saw "was homes burning down."
The Lethbridge brothers reckoned the flames came within 200 metres of them before they were out of harm’s way. They ended up walking home along Herring Cove Road.
"It’s good to be alive," said Angus Lethbridge. "It was hot and at first we thought it was just the wind blowing. But it wasn’t the wind — it was the fire coming through the trees."
The Lethbridge brothers said trees and brush on the ground, toppled during hurricane Juan, were tinder dry. They said their clothing was covered in ash.
Halifax’s Sean McOuat also had a close call while hiking with his brother in the York Redoubt area. The rapidly spreading flames jumped over their path.
They ran from the trail onto Spryfield’s Princetown Avenue and watched firefighters run past them toward the flames, which were heading toward the oceanside community of Ferguson’s Cove. However, the firefighters soon turned around.
The flames were massive, "at least 80-90 feet," Mr. McOuat said.
The brothers saw a pair of helicopters fly to the scene. The choppers landed in a gravel pit where they were being set up with buckets to carry lake water to drop on the fires.
The pilots told the brothers "they were a thousand feet up and a couple of miles out and they couldn’t get close to the fire because it was that hot."
Eric Wood, who lives on Wenlock Grove, off Purcells Cove Road, estimated the fire to be about five kilometres from his property. Even so, people in his neighbourhood were told to stay put. Many neighbours had to walk part of the way home, after leaving their cars near Williams Lake Road, he said. That’s where the authorities blocked off Purcells Cove Road, just beyond Frog Pond, a local popular park.
It appeared that the fire wasn’t headed toward his home, but he was relieved to see a water bomber arrive Thursday afternoon.
One firefighter communicating with another said: "It’s just a ball of fire. We can’t get in there."
Police officers were going door-to-door along Arbutus Avenue, ordering people to leave. One area resident said officers were waiting while people grabbed some cherished items to ensure they’d vacate their homes.
No one was hurt, fire service spokesman Dave Meldrum said.
Residents evacuated from their homes were forced to find temporary shelter Thursday night. John Webb, Nova Scotia’s director of emergency social services, said some people were staying with relatives or friends, while others would be at motels or hotels. The Chocolate Lake community centre was set up as a shelter for evacuees, who were later moved to the Captain William Spry Community Centre.
With Dan Arsenault, Eva Hoare
and Davene Jeffrey, staff reporters'
Today
- Cloudy. Periods of rain beginning this morning. Amount 10 to 15 mm. Fog along the coast late this morning and this afternoon. Wind southwest 20 km/h becoming south 40 gusting to 70 this morning. High 10.
- Tonight
- Periods of rain. Amount 5 to 10 mm. Fog patches. Wind southwest 30 km/h gusting to 50. Temperature steady near 9.
- Saturday
- Showers ending in the morning then cloudy with 30 percent chance of showers. Clearing in the evening. Amount 2 mm. Fog patches dissipating in the morning. Wind southwest 30 km/h gusting to 50 becoming west 30 in the afternoon then light in the evening. High 10 except 17 inland.
Current conditions at my location:
+8°C
Overcast
Wind is moderate SW.
No comments:
Post a Comment