Halifax: Following a wildfire on Canada's Atlantic coast that destroyed about 200 homes and other buildings and forced the evacuation of 16,000 people, the leader of Nova Scotia pleaded with people to stay out of the woods and refrain from any activity that could spark additional fires.
It is substantial. It's heartbreaking," said Premier Tim Houston, who visited the disaster area to assess the damage before announcing a ban on woodland activities.
Fire officials expressed concern that the evacuated subdivisions could experience a "reburn" due to the dry, windy conditions, but many residents were eager to return on Tuesday to see if their homes and pets had survived. The extended forecast predicts that Wednesday will be hotter than usual and that there won't be any rain until at least Friday.
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Houston stated that all movement and activity in all forested areas is prohibited. According to him, this includes all mining, forestry, fishing, hiking, camping, off-road driving, and all commercial activity on public lands.
"Don't burn at this time. Nova Scotia prohibits burning. Six unauthorised burns were reported by conservation officers last night. This is completely absurd given the current state of this province, which includes three out-of-control fires, eight yesterday, and 12 on Sunday. Don't Burn!" Tuesday, Houston reported. "We must take all reasonable steps to prevent the occurrence of new fires."
The forest protection manager for the province's wildfire management team, Scott Tingley, declared that it is safe to assume that all of these fires were "very likely caused by humans."
Most of it probably could be avoided. Accidents do occur, so we certainly appreciate the message from the premier, Tingley said.
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According to Halifax Deputy Fire Chief David Meldrum, firefighters have been working to put out hotspots in the fire that broke out on Sunday in the Halifax area. Although the municipal government estimated that about 200 buildings had been damaged or destroyed, he said on Tuesday that it was still too early to provide an exact number.
Dan Cavanaugh was one of the 20 people who gathered on Tuesday in a parking lot near Halifax to wait to find out if their suburban homes had been destroyed.
The insurance adjuster, who was 48 years old, said, "We're like everyone else in this lot. "We're not certain that we have a home to return to."
Police officers were calling people to be escorted to see what had happened to their properties while noting the names of the residents.
An eight-person team was entering the evacuation zone to retrieve animals left behind, according to Sarah Lyon of the Nova Scotia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
A total of 16,000 residents were instructed to leave their homes northwest of Halifax, the majority of which are accessible by car in less than 30 minutes. A hundred square kilometres (38 miles) or so are required to be evacuated.
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More than 40 people waited in the parking lot of a nearby supermarket before being led into the evacuation area, according to Sonya Higgins, who runs a cat rescue organisation in Halifax. Seven cats were supposed to be rescued from two homes, they hoped. She claimed that the people who have contacted her about their pets have been "frantic" to locate and save them.
