Latest news with #ConceptionBay
CTV News
09-05-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Newfoundland man describes escape from fire that turned town into a ‘black hole'
A wildfire state of emergency still in place in Adam's Cove, but residents are expected to return soon as the weather improves. Kamil Karamali reports. 'It's not a town anymore. It's a black hole.' That's how Trevor Parsons described what's left of his parents' neighbourhood, which was ravaged by flames in the Avalon region in eastern Newfoundland. The fire began Wednesday in the town of Adam's Cove and forced evacuations along the shore of Conception Bay. He says his parents, who need help with mobility, may not have escaped in time if it weren't for his sister, who was staying with them at the time. 'She was out by the door and smelled smoke,' he told CTV News. She piled the family into the car and drove to the nearest exit from the town — Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove — that was quickly being engulfed by a 'ball of fire.' Newfoundland fire Fires rage in northeastern Newfoundland, leveling homes and other structures. (Image courtesy of Trevor Parsons) The flames had grown and soon loomed over treetops, he said. 'They only got out with the clothes on their backs.' The family was able to leave with their dog, but they couldn't find their cat, Parsons explained. He returned to the house at around 2 a.m. to rescue the feline, which had found refuge under a camper and is now back in his parents' custody. When he returned to the property, the camper was still standing, but the house was reduced to its bones. 'The whole street, every second and third house, is burnt,' he said. 'It was like hell breaking out.' Newfoundland fire These images shared by Trevor Parsons show what remains of his parents' property following a ravaging wildfire. Rainfall helped to quell the flames. Officials declared the fire surrounding Adam's Cove — the largest of six fires that broke out in the area — had been contained after it seriously damaged around 40 structures. As of 11 a.m. on Friday, about 501 hectares had been affected, according to Newfoundland's active wildfire dashboard . The province says there remains a high risk of wildfires in the northeast. Waterbombers were dispatched to tamp down the fire. Newfoundland Power cut off electricity at the perimeter of the evacuation zone. Crews remained stationed there to ensure power could be restored quickly once the fire was contained enough to do so. Parsons says he's got his parent staying with him now. They're happy to have their pets, but he says it's only 'sinking in now' that so much else has been lost. They're not alone — Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove Mayor Curtis Delaney said about 150 people showed up for a community breakfast in the town hall Thursday morning, according to the Canadian Press. Inside, tables were piled with water, snacks, diapers and toiletries. People were feeling hopeful, and grateful for the rain, Delaney said. With files from The Canadian Press
CTV News
09-05-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Newfoundland man describes escape from fire that turned town into a ‘black hole'
A wildfire state of emergency still in place in Adam's Cove, but residents are expected to return soon as the weather improves. Kamil Karamali reports. 'It's not a town anymore. It's a black hole.' That's how Trevor Parsons described what's left of his parents' neighbourhood, which was ravaged by flames in the Avalon region in eastern Newfoundland. The fire began Wednesday in the town of Adam's Cove and forced evacuations along the shore of Conception Bay. He says his parents, who need help with mobility, may not have escaped in time if it weren't for his sister, who was staying with them at the time. 'She was out by the door and smelled smoke,' he told CTV News. She piled the family into the car and drove to the nearest exit from the town — Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove — that was quickly being engulfed by a 'ball of fire.' Newfoundland fire Fires rage in northeastern Newfoundland, leveling homes and other structures. (Image courtesy of Trevor Parsons) The flames had grown and soon loomed over treetops, he said. 'They only got out with the clothes on their backs.' The family was able to leave with their dog, but they couldn't find their cat, Parsons explained. He returned to the house at around 2 a.m. to rescue the feline, which had found refuge under a camper and is now back in his parents' custody. When he returned to the property, the camper was still standing, but the house was reduced to its bones. 'The whole street, every second and third house, is burnt,' he said. 'It was like hell breaking out.' Newfoundland fire These images shared by Trevor Parsons show what remains of his parents' property following a ravaging wildfire. Rainfall helped to quell the flames. Officials declared the fire surrounding Adam's Cove — the largest of six fires that broke out in the area — had been contained after it seriously damaged around 40 structures. As of 11 a.m. on Friday, about 501 hectares had been affected, according to Newfoundland's active wildfire dashboard . The province says there remains a high risk of wildfires in the northeast. Waterbombers were dispatched to tamp down the fire. Newfoundland Power cut off electricity at the perimeter of the evacuation zone. Crews remained stationed there to ensure power could be restored quickly once the fire was contained enough to do so. Parsons says he's got his parent staying with him now. They're happy to have their pets, but he says it's only 'sinking in now' that so much else has been lost. They're not alone — Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove Mayor Curtis Delaney said about 150 people showed up for a community breakfast in the town hall Thursday morning, according to the Canadian Press. Inside, tables were piled with water, snacks, diapers and toiletries. People were feeling hopeful, and grateful for the rain, Delaney said. With files from The Canadian Press
Globe and Mail
08-05-2025
- Climate
- Globe and Mail
Homes destroyed, more people flee as wildfires rage in eastern Newfoundland
More people were packing up to flee their homes Thursday morning as wildfires raged in Newfoundland along the western shore of Conception Bay, about 45 kilometres northwest of St. John's. The flames had destroyed about a dozen homes since Wednesday afternoon, said Gerry Rogers, a resident of the amalgamated town of Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove, N.L. Rogers was emotional as she paced her home on Thursday morning, packing up her belongings to leave. She could see the flames creeping closer toward her house when she looked out the window, she said in an interview. 'To be somewhere where there's a raging fire — a raging fire! — and you're surrounded by water,' Rogers said, her voice catching. 'It's so ironic, you know? Because we're right on the ocean.' Officials with the municipality of 415 people declared a state of emergency just after 10 p.m. local time on Wednesday. Rogers said she first saw the smoke on Wednesday afternoon, as she was driving home from Carbonear, a larger centre about four kilometres east of Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove. 'We could see the fire over the hill, and it spread so quickly,' she said. 'We have hardly had any snow at all in the past two years, and there's been no rain. The earth is parched here.' Water bombers doused the flames all afternoon and into the evening, but they stopped when it got dark. Residents of nearby Adam's Cove and Western Bay were ordered to evacuate on Wednesday, and Rogers said her neighbours had also left by Thursday morning. The water bombers were delayed that morning because of fog, she said, but they were back in the air by 10:30 a.m. 'Our own firefighters are so tired,' she said. 'They don't say that, but they've been at it. During the night, they were doing the best that they could to try to save more homes.' 'It's different because we don't have fire hydrants,' she added. 'Trucks have to go to the pond and fill up and then go back to the fire.' The province's wildfire dashboard showed two out-of-control fires burning in the region on Thursday, and officials have set up several emergency centres for people who can't get back to their homes because of the flames. Provincial officials did not provide any information or interviews Thursday morning, but a spokesperson said the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture expects to issue an advisory later in the day.
