Province bans all travel and activity within forests while wildfires continue

WILDFIRE REPORT

Province bans all travel and activity within forests while wildfires continue

Nova Scotia premier Tim Houston did not mince words in his Wednesday afternoon update on the province’s efforts to quell a pair of wildfires in Upper Tantallon and Shelburne County.

“Travel and activity in our woods is banned,” Houston said, speaking from Shelburne, where an out-of-control 11,510-hectare blaze has prompted the evacuation of more than 1,000 homes.

As of 4pm yesterday, all activity—walking, camping and fishing to logging and mining—in Nova Scotia’s forests is on hold until firefighters are able to douse the remaining blazes in what has been a hot and unrelenting end to the month. More than 16,400 Haligonians are still waiting to return to their homes as the municipality continues to fight a fire that started Sunday in Tantallon’s Westwood subdivision, and has spread as far as Pockwock and Hammonds Plains.

Meanwhile, Halifax mayor Mike Savage says an update could come as early as this morning on reducing the size of the HRM’s current fire evacuation zone.

Coast reporter Martin Bauman has the latest.

Need to know

☀️ Today's weather: Sunny with a high of 25C and a low of 11C. A UV index of 8.

⚠️ A special air quality statement is still on due to the wildfires. This reduction in air quality is something doctors are warning can greatly affect pregnant people. These individuals should take extra precautions.

🔥 Here’s the province’s most recent updates on the ongoing wildfires including a list of school closures.

On The Coast

In other news

❤️ Some hope in these tough times: Read how some Nova Scotians are spreading kindness and stepping up in their communities.

🤖 Wildfires are only predicted to get worse, however new artificial intelligence forest sensors offered by SensaioTech could help with prevention, early detection and accuracy.

👋 Today is Ray’s Lebanese restaurant's last day in business after 42 years. Coast reporter Martin Bauman spoke with the popular Burnside-based falafel hot spot owner Raymond Khattar.

📱 Good news! Internet and cellphone providers in Nova Scotia have confirmed their service is holding up despite the wildfires.

⚽️ A new Maritime Super Series soccer tournament in Nova Scotia is increasing talk that a new Atlantic league could be in the works.

🎞 Cape Breton animator, Sean McCarron, will have their recent short film, Corvine, screened at the upcoming Tribeca Festival in New York City. CBC has the story.

🌊 The closure of the baby eels fishery in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick has been extended by 45 days.

DEVELOPING

A timeline of the Upper Tantallon wildfire

It was early Sunday evening in Hammonds Plains, and Karrie-Ann Buchanan and her partner were beginning to worry about wildfire smoke. Plumes of it had been drifting northeast from Upper Tantallon since late that afternoon. It hung over the Woodhaven RV Park they co-own and operate—64 acres of forest and campsites down the road from Hatfield Farm—and clouded the sky into a hazy grey-brown.

‘We didn’t get notification [right away] that we had to evacuate,” she says, speaking by phone with The Coast, “but we made the decision ourselves to tell everyone that they had to leave. And I’m glad we did.”

Within an hour of fleeing to Indigo Shores, the first provincial emergency broadcast told them their Hammonds Plains home was under an evacuation order. A wildfire that started in Upper Tantallon was spreading fast.

Read how a fire spread from one St. Margarets Bay-area subdivision to prompt the evacuation of 16,000 Haligonians at The Coast.

🤝 Now hiring

• Project coordinator, social media assistant & graphic designer at Flax Mobile

• Fundraising Coordinator at 2b Theatre Company

• Public Affairs Director at NATIONAL Public Relations

• Full-time Bartender at Side Hustle Snack Bar

• Jack 92.9 Content Director at Rogers Sports & Media

• Community Food Coordinator at Ecology Action Centre

• Kitchen Helper at The Halliburton Hotel

• Compliance Officer at Halifax Regional Municipality

• Communications Specialist at Neptune Theatre

Hiring? Reply back and let us know!

Sure things

Looking for something to do this week? Check out these Coast picks:

🗓 Dartmouth Community Fridge: Dartmouth Community Fridge is celebrating its first anniversary with an outdoor free community event. Head down to 61 Dundas Street for food, music and fun | June 4 | 2pm-4pm | Free.

🗓 Market Madness: Shop from 60 local vendors at this year's Market Madness happening at Cole Harbour Place | June 4 | 11am-3pm | Free admission.

🗓 Halifax Gutsy Walk: Help support the Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis community at this year’s Halifax Gutsy Walk happening at Shubie Park | June 4 | 11am - 3:30pm.

Find more Halifax events in The Coast listings

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