Officials are holding a wildfire preparedness event at Keji Seaside in Port Joli on Monday. (Parks Canada)

Parks Canada is holding a community wildfire preparedness session on Tuesday, May 7, at Kejimkujik Seaside Adjunct in Port Joli.

The event goes from 3 to 5 p.m. Officials from the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources and Renewables and the Liverpool Firefighters’ Association will be on hand to give advice on how to make communities more resilient to wildfires.

Parks Canada will also be giving a tour of the recent fire prevention work at Keji Seaside.

It’s part of National Wildfire Community Preparedness Day which is observed on the first Saturday in May. That’s a project of FireSmart Canada, which educates people on how to boost resilience to wildfires. 

Crews in Nova Scotia have already responded to 27 wildfires so far this year. Last May, a blaze that broke out in the Barrington Lake area eventually consumed more than 23,433 hectares.

It’s an outdoor event. It was originally scheduled for Monday. Updates will be posted on the Keji Facebook page.

Charges have been laid in last spring’s Barrington Lake wildfire. (Communications Nova Scotia photo)

By Rick Conrad

A 22-year-old Shelburne County man has been charged in last year’s historic Barrington Lake wildfire.

Dalton Clark Stewart, of Villagedale, was charged under the Forests Act on Wednesday. He is accused of lighting a fire on private land without permission, failing to take reasonable efforts to prevent the spread of a fire and leaving a fire unattended.

Stewart is scheduled to appear in Shelburne provincial court on March 7.

These are not criminal charges. Police have said they don’t plan to pursue criminal charges in the wildfires. The Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources and Renewables investigated and laid the charges.

In a news release Thursday, the department said it is still investigating the wildfire in Tantallon last spring. It has two years from the date of an offence to lay charges.

The maximum penalties under the Forests Act are a $50,000 fine and/or six months in jail.

The Barrington Lake wildfire began on May 26 and burned 23,379 hectares. It was declared under control on June 13. The Tantallon wildfire began May 28 and burned 969 hectares. It was declared under control June 4. Both fires were extinguished on July 26.

The Barrington Lake fire forced the evacuation of more than 6,000 people and destroyed 60 homes and cottages, as well as 150 other buildings. The Tantallon fire razed 151 homes and forced more than 16,000 residents to flee the area.

The wildfire that spread through Shelburne County was the worst in the province’s recorded history.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com