Newfoundland's largest wildfire continues to gain ground near Kingston
Mark Lawlor said the fire in eastern Newfoundland started over a week ago near the coastal town of Kingston, N.L., and has since expanded to about 52 square kilometres along the northwestern shore of Conception Bay.
Lawlor said it was unclear how many homes or cabins in the area have been destroyed by the Kingston fire, which started Aug. 3.
"The area of the Kingston fire is very smoky, therefore visibility is limited," he said in an interview. "So it's difficult to get in and actually count the number of structures."
As of Monday afternoon, there were seven active wildfires in the province – five in Newfoundland and two in Labrador. But the Kingston fire was by far the largest.
As of Saturday, about 3,000 people or about 1,500 households were under a provincial evacuation order.
Many of those empty household and businesses are considered too close to the Kingston fire.
At Ochre Pit Cove, about 13 kilometres north of Kingston, the local Red Ochre Cafe is now a firefighting command post. Cafe owner Ray Dwyer said most of his neighbours are worried about their homes.
'It's scary for everybody,' he said in an interview. 'Everyone's evacuated and they don't know how their properties are. Half the north shore here is scorched. It's strange when you go up the road and there's not a person, not an animal. It's just pretty desolate.'
The picturesque hamlet was evacuated last Monday.
Dwyer, who has managed the cafe for six years, said his 13 local employees are out of a job, and electricity in the area has been cut off.
'I had five great big freezers full and I have to go throw it away,' he said. 'The worst part about it is my employees have no income. It's got me killed that I can't help them.'
Meanwhile, Dwyer said local firefighters have had to deal with very thick smoke.
'The fire departments have had their asses worked off here, and hats off to all the volunteers,' he said, adding that the area was hit by wildfires in May. 'All of these firefighters are volunteers.'
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 11, 2025.
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