Bay d'Espoir Highway forest fire doubles in size, as crews battle flames for 3rd day
CBC
The only road in and out of the Connaigre Peninsula remains closed Tuesday morning, and an out-of-control forest fire has nearly doubled in size since Monday.
Bryan Oke, provincial forest fire duty officer, said there was an opportunity to let some traffic through the closed Bay d'Espoir Highway around 7 p.m. NT on Monday.
"There was a short opportunity, a window to support a motorcade through the closed section, to assist with the vehicle backlog. We'll be looking for similar opportunities today; however, there is significant smoke in the area and we advise the public that that is a health and safety issue," Oke told CBC News on Tuesday.
Oke says they can't say when they will allow traffic though again, since it depends on fire conditions and the support of air services. Elvis Loveless, MHA for Fortune Bay-Cape La Hune said traffic did get moving through the area around 9:30 a.m. NT Tuesday.
The fire, one of six forest fires in the province, has grown to 1,006 hectares from an estimated 540 hectares on Monday, Oke said, but it is not burning near communities.
As many as three water bombers, two helicopters, 24 firefighters and one pump unit are fighting the flames near the highway.
Increasing smoke, which Oke said is dense and presents a health and safety issue for the crews, forced them to relocate their staging area Monday night.
An Environment Canada special air quality statement, covering a large part of central Newfoundland from Buchans to Gander, is still in effect. The weather office said smoke is drifting downwind from the fires and is heavily concentrated in some areas.
"Some areas are still seeing some relatively elevated contractions of smoke," said Rodney Barney, a meteorologist with the weather office in Gander.
This summer has been hotter and drier than normal and while heat warnings for much of the island have ended, temperatures in central Newfoundland are forecast to be in the mid-20 C range Tuesday, with humidex values making it feel more like 34 degrees.
Barney said showers should start on the west coast this afternoon and spread eastward to central Newfoundland.
"For the most part those rain showers do look relatively light but as they move into central they will over some areas become slightly more intense, possibly giving rise to the odd thundershower," Barney said.
Around 10:30 a.m. NT Tuesday, maps from Environment Canada showed heavy lightning moving across the Connaigre Peninsula.
The fires began after lightning moved through central Newfoundland on Sunday.
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