Parks like Pine Grove Park in Milton will reopen after the Nova Scotia government lifted its woods ban in most counties on Thursday. (Tourism Nova Scotia)
The ban on travel in the woods has been lifted for most counties in Nova Scotia except for Annapolis County.
The Nova Scotia government allowed travel and activities in the woods to resume as of 4 p.m. on Thursday, according to a news release from the Department of Natural Resources. That includes hunting.
The change applies to Queens, Cumberland, Hants, Lunenburg, Kings, Shelburne, Digby and Yarmouth counties. Restrictions were previously lifted in the other nine counties.
Restrictions will remain for Annapolis County until Oct. 15, the end of wildfire season.
“We’ve looked at improving conditions and also at the impact these necessary restrictions have had on businesses, which we’ve tried to minimize all along,” said Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton. “We’re at a point where, for both reasons, it’s time to lift these restrictions everywhere except Annapolis County, where crews are continuing to fight the Long Lake wildfire.”
The ban on open fires remains for the entire province until Oct. 15 or until conditions improve.
The fine for violating the burn ban is $25,000.
The woods ban was introduced on Aug. 5, while the burn ban began July 30.
Department of Emergency Management staff stand on top of their communications truck to view the wildfires in Annapolis County on Sun., Aug. 24. (Province of Nova Scotia)
The Nova Scotia government has announced emergency financial support for people who have been evacuated by the wildfires in Annapolis County.
The maximum amount people are eligible for is $3,000 per adult 18 and older, and $1,750 per minor.
The support is available for people who have been forced to leave their primary residence, based on the number of days they’re gone:
four to seven days – $500 per adult (18 and older), $200 per minor
eight to 14 days – an additional $500 per adult (18 and older), an additional $200 per minor
15 or more days – an additional $250 per week per adult (18 and older), an additional $200 per minor.
People evacuated from secondary homes like cottages or cabins do not qualify.
The funding will be available until the evacuation order is lifted or until the end of the wildfire season on Oct. 15, whichever comes first.
The help was announced on the same day the province confirmed that some homes have been damaged in the Long Lake wildfires. The blaze has grown to an estimated 7,780 hectares.
Premier Tim Houston told reporters at a briefing on Monday afternoon that on Sunday, five new fires broke out around the province. He said one of those fires in Cumberland County is still listed as out of control.
“The Long Lake fire in Annapolis County took a real turn over the weekend and it’s had devastating impacts,” Houston said.
“It’s now over 7,500 (hectares) in size, maybe closer to 8,000. Over 230 homes have been evacuated and there has been some loss of homes. This is a crushing feeling. We really can’t imagine what it must like, what it must feel like and also with the added anxiety of not knowing what’s happening to your home, it’s an awful time.”
In total, 330 properties have been affected by the evacuation order. The funding is in addition to other help through the County of Annapolis, the Canadian Red Cross, the Salvation Army and the Nova Scotia Guard.
Mainland Nova Scotia finally saw some rain on Monday afternoon, but officials told reporters that much more rain is needed to make a dent in the Long Lake wildfires.
Jim Rudderham, the director of fleet and forest protection with the Department of Natural Resources, said the fire grew so large and hot on Sunday that crews had to be pulled out.
“At peak burn time, … any amount of resources couldn’t have touched that fire yesterday,” he told reporters. “We certainly tried as much as we could, but at a certain point it’s not safe for anyone to be in there and we had to leave. … If you were to put water on it, there was no effect. It was just too powerful, too strong. Couldn’t get near enough to it regardless, but even if you had the biggest water bombers in the world yesterday when it was at its biggest point, dropping water on that fire, you couldn’t touch it. It just wouldn’t affect putting that fire out.”
The premier said the province hasn’t considered asking for federal help yet. He said they’re getting good support from fire departments from other communities and provinces. Firefighters from around Queens County have been helping out almost since the wildfire began.
Houston said the province will wait until after the fires are under control to consider any further compensation for residents whose houses are damaged or destroyed.
The Nova Scotia government is posting the latest information on the Long Lake wildfire on its various social media channels and at novascotia.ca/alerts.
Fire crews are on the scene of a fire near Round Lake in North Queens. (File photo via Province of Nova)
UPDATED 2:10 p.m., Friday, Aug. 15
Local fire and Natural Resources crews are holding a small fire near North Queens that began around suppertime on Thursday.
Firefighters from Queens and Lunenburg counties were called to an area at Durland Lake Brook, which is near Round Lake, off the Old Annapolis Road, close to the border of Queens and Annapolis counties.
According to the Canadian Wildland Fire Information System map, the blaze was about a third of a hectare in size. The wildfire burning in the Long Lake area in West Dalhousie, Annapolis County, is about 406 hectares.
North Queens Fire Chief Chris Wolfe told QCCR on Friday afternoon that the fire is being held.
The Durland Lake Brook fire is part of the Long Lake wildfire complex. According to an update from the Nova Scotia government this morning, five Natural Resources and 12 local firefighters are working on the Durland Lake Brook fire, which was at about a half hectare this morning.
The Liverpool Fire Department posted on Facebook that it will also take a break from filling residential wells so they can concentrate on fighting fires. They’ve asked people to phone the fire hall at 902-354-4530 and leave a message. They said they’ll get to the wells as soon as the wildfire threat is over.
Department of Natural Resources staff member Mark Shaw works to put out fires in the Upper Tantallon area on May 30, 2023. (Province of Nova Scotia / File)
UPDATED TUES., AUG. 5 at 5:20 p.m.
With drought conditions affecting most of Nova Scotia, Premier Tim Houston announced Tuesday that the province is banning all activities in the woods and on trails, with few exceptions.
“We’re hearing from rural fire departments that are worried about low water levels in the ponds and lakes that they use and really about their overall ability to respond to emergencies,” Houston said at an early afternoon news conference.
“As tinder-dry conditions continue to persist from one end of the province to the other, the risk of wildfires increases and the risk is very, very high right now.
“Effective 4 p.m. today, we’re telling Nova Scotians stay out of the woods. We are restricting travel and activities that really aren’t necessary for most of us. Hiking, camping, fishing and the use of vehicles in the woods are not permitted. Trail systems through woods are off limits. Camping is allowed but only in official campgrounds.”
Houston said the fine for violating the new restrictions is the same as flouting the burn ban — $25,000. So far this year, seven people have been fined. Officials didn’t disclose where those fines were levied.
The province implemented a provincewide ban on open fires on July 30. Hot, dry conditions are expected to last in Nova Scotia for at least two weeks.
“I know it’s inconvenient and I know it’s the height of summer vacation … but we have to stay out of the woods. It’s a small price to pay right now to avoid the kind of devastation we saw from the wildfires in 2023. And nobody wants that.
“We need all Nova scotians to help keep our firefighters safe along wih everyone else by following the measures we’ve put in place. I’m counting on you to do the right thing. Don’t light a campfire, stay out of the woods and stay safe.”
Commercial activities in the woods will also be restricted. Forestry, mining and any other work must be approved by a local Department of Natural Resources office.
Beaches and parks are still open, but any fires are banned. Private landowners may use their own properties but can’t allow others to use their wooded areas.
Fireworks are also part of the ban. In response to a reporter’s question about whether the penalty for setting off fireworks during a burn ban should also be increased to $25,000, the premier said “that sounds like a good idea to me. (It) should be.” It was unclear whether the fine would be increased.
Houston said the move to restrict activities in the woods was made based on advice from Natural Resources officials.
Minister Tory Rushton said Nova Scotia has already had about 100 wildfires so far this year. He said they were extinguished quickly, but the kind of blaze that officials have battled is different.
“The fires we’re seeing right now are burning deeper into the root system and going deep underground and that kind of fire takes a long time to put out which is exhausting our resources,” Rushton said.
“The aim is to limit unnecessary travel in the woods and activities.”
Dave White, president of the Queens County ATV Association, told QCCR on Tuesday that he supports the province’s decision.
“I think that the premier and Minister Rushton are absolutely making the right call and relying on the right people to give them good information,” White said.
“As much as I want everybody to have recreational opportunities, now is not the time.”
White said his group and others are meeting with provincial officials on Wednesday to find out what the new restrictions mean for major ongoing work on trail maintenance.
“Those are commercial practices, but I suspect that those will be suspended until conditions improve. Obviously, our priority is to protect our woods and that leads to our community, and our friends, family and our firefighters. That’s the No. 1 thing that we’re looking at right now.”
His group and the Queens Rails to Trails Association have posted on their Facebook pages that all trails are closed.
“It’s important that people follow this. The opportunity to use our trails will come again,” White said.
“Our standard line is we’re not just building rails, we’re also building community, and that means working together to keep everybody safe and happy and healthy.”
Parks Canada issued an advisory late Tuesday afternoon (read that here) detailing these closures in Queens County:
All trails in Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site
Backcountry camping at Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site
All trails at Kejimkujik National Park Seaside
Front-country camping, beaches, and day-use areas (including Jakes Landing equipment rentals) at Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site are still open.
The Region of Queens issued its own news release late Tuesday afternoon with details about which parks and trails are closed in the county. (Read the full news release here.)
The following municipal trails are closed:
Pine Grove Park, including Anniversary Trail which connects Pine Grove
Park to the Trestle Trail
Trestle Trail, including the extension that begins at White Point Road and
George Street and continues running parallel to George Street to connect
to the Trestle Trail, ending on Bristol Avenue
Meadow Pond Trail
Queens Place Trail
People who use the Trestle Trail or other wooded trails to get to other parts of Liverpool or Queens County should use Queens County Transit or a taxi service while the restrictions are in place, the region says in the release.
Path Lake Park and Scout Camp Park are also closed. Other non-wooded municipal parks throughout Queens such as
Tupper Park, Centennial Park, Privateer Park, Port Medway Lighthouse Park, sports fields and playgrounds remain open.
The covered picnic areas at Beach Meadows Beach Municipal Park are off limits, because they’re surrounded by wooded areas, but the beach is still open.
The municipal leaf and yard waste site in Western Head is also closed immediately. The region will be posting closure notices in those areas affected, the release said.
White pointed out that Queens County has many options for exercise, including beaches, parks, the walking track at Queens Place Emera Centre and the new all-weather outdoor track at Liverpool Regional High School.
“We still have lots of options for recreation,” White said.
Thousands of hectares and many homes were destroyed and thousands of people evacuated in wildfires in May and June 2023 in Shelburne County and Tantallon.
The restrictions announced last week and Tuesday will stay in place until Oct. 15, or until conditions improve with several days of steady rain.
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston told reporters Thursday that a $25,000 fine for violating burn restrictions is about preventing more wildfires. (Nova Scotia Government)
With wildfires breaking out in western Canada, Nova Scotia has increased the fine for violating the daily burn restrictions to $25,000.
From March 15 to Oct. 15, daily burn restrictions are in place across the province to help prevent wildfires.
Burning is not permitted anywhere between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. because that is when the wildfire risk is greatest.
Premier Tim Houston told reporters on Thursday that the increased fine is to help prevent the wildfires from happening in the first place. The basic fine for violating burn restrictions is $237.50. The larger fine is in place until the end of wildfire season.
“We encourage all Nova Scotians to check before you burn,” Houston said. “Check the website, reach out to find out what’s the situation in your community. … With the weather changing, the risk increases and we know the experience that we had in this province last year and we are seeing what is happening across the country, significant forest fires across the country. We should do what we can to prepare and encourage prevention.”
Last spring, wildfires in southwestern Nova Scotia and in the Halifax area consumed more than 25,000 hectares and destroyed 200 homes.
Houston said people should check the province’s BurnSafe map every day to check the restrictions in their area.
The daily burn restrictions also now apply to campgrounds. Open fires like campfires are permitted only after 2 p.m. when the BurnSafe map is green or after 7 p.m. when the map is yellow. Those are the same standards for open fires in people’s backyards.
The province increased the fine to $25,000 last year when the Nova Scotia wildfires were still burning. Houston said Thursday he’s confident that if somebody violates the burning restrictions, they will be fined.
“So the enforcement is there. We’re serious about preparation, we’re serious about prevention. I would personally push for if anyone ignores the burn ban, I want them charged for sure.”
So far this year, crews have responded to 41 wildfires across the province that have burned about 39 hectares.
Barb Hill-Taylor of East Port L’Hebert was at a community wildfire preparedness day on Tuesday, organized by Parks Canada. (Rick Conrad)
When last spring’s wildfires were consuming thousands of hectares around Barrington in southwestern Nova Scotia, Barb Hill-Taylor was about 90 kilometres away at her home in East Port L’Hebert.
“We have only one exit from our peninsula,” she said Tuesday, “and I was concerned about that and also the closeness of the Barrington fire, you could see the plume.”
The fires didn’t get close enough to threaten Hill-Taylor’s house, but they still left a lasting impression. Even though her house is made of concrete with a metal roof, she was still concerned enough that after it was all over, she and her neighbours asked the province’s wildfire prevention officer to visit their area. The officer gave her and her neighbours tips on how to make their properties more wildfire resilient.
“It was great. I learned a lot. We spent about two hours driving around the peninsulas and she would point out things that were issues for people to look at. It was a really worthwhile exercise. The snag is that people have to act on the recommendations now and cut trees. It’s difficult because you spend a lot of time doing your landscaping.”
Hill-Taylor was one of the local residents at Kejimkujik National Park Seaside in Port Joli on Tuesday for a wildfire community preparedness day.
Organized by Parks Canada, Tuesday’s event also included officials from Nova Scotia’s Department of Natural Resources and Renewables and the Liverpool Fire Department.
They were there to educate people on how to make their property a little safer from fires. Parks Canada officials also laid out many of the measures they have taken at the park to help mitigate the spread of wildfires, which mirrored the things people can do on their own properties.
The fires that started in the Barrington Lake area last May eventually burned more than 23,000 hectares. So far this year, Nova Scotia crews have responded to 27 wildfires around the province.
Cory Isenor, a forestry resource technician with the Department of Natural Resources and Renewables, says it’s a lot about common sense.
“It’s looking at the stuff around your home and trying to eliminate anything that could catch fire.”
Isenor advises homeowners to keep grass trimmed and short around your foundations, clean up any brush or leaves from around your home, make sure your decks, patios, gutters and roof are free of leaf and yard waste, and cut back any trees, especially if they’re evergreens, from around your home. He said it’s also important to make sure stacks of firewood are stored as far away from your house as possible.
Officials discussed which building materials are more prone to igniting in case of an outdoor fire. Metal roofing and concrete structures are best. But using non-combustible and fire-rated products can also help.
“The big thing is the distances from the combustible materials around your home,” Isenor said in an interview. “And the biggest thing is what we call the intermediate zone which is touching your house, a couple of metres right around your home, that you may have flower beds or dried wood, fences, anything that could catch and then transfer that over to your home.
“You want to try to remove any combustible material in that immediate zone: birch bark mulch, firewood piles. Decks are always an area of concern.”
And Isenor said it’s also important, in the event of a wildfire, for people to be ready to shelter in place for 72 hours or to evacuate immediately.
Local resident Nancy Perry said she and her husband already cut back many of the trees on their property after last year’s fires. But she said she came to the event to be better prepared, just in case.
“I was just interested to find out how we could make some changes at our property to be a little safer if we ever get another fire.”
The wildfire preparedness day was part of FireSmart Canada’s National Wildfire Community Preparedness Day, which was observed on Saturday. Parks Canada officials recommended on Tuesday that people check out the FireSmart Canada website for more tips and a self-assessment of how to protect your home.
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.
