Latest news with #JohnHerron
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Firefighters from P.E.I., N.S. and Maine arriving to battle wildfires in N.B.
Firefighters from Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Maine are being sent to New Brunswick to help the province fight active forest fires near Moncton and Miramichi. Minister of Natural Resources John Herron confirmed Monday that provincial fire teams are expecting the help of 30 firefighters total — 20 from P.E.I., five from Nova Scotia. and another five from Maine. "We made a request for 60, so we're already halfway there," Herron said in an interview Monday morning. "We're very heartened that [our] neighbours have have stepped up and offered help to us." Herron and Premier Susan Holt will hold a news conference today at 3:30 p.m. to update the public on the wildfires. The news conference will be livestreamed here. Public Safety Minister Robert Gauvin and wildfire prevention officer Roger Collet will also be answering questions, The Natural Resources Department could not confirm when crews from other jurisdictions would arrive to help, only that they will be deployed to either of the fires near Moncton or Miramichi depending on how they evolve. "We're usually the ones who actually send firefighters to other jurisdictions," Herron said. "For the first time, unprecedented, we've actually asked for boots on the ground here in New Brunswick." The province currently has two water bombers out on loan in Newfoundland, Herron said, which it recently sent to help battle wildfires there. But the province has borrowed two from Quebec that are supplementing resources. "We have two that are actually larger on loan for us to contest the wildfire in Oldfield," he said, referencing the fire near Miramichi that began Wednesday. Herron said the province also requested a Canadair CL-415, a large water bomber plane with a scoop to pick up water. While the province has received help through aerial supports like water bombers in the past, according to Herron, this is the first time it's made a formal request for help. Moncton community preparing for potential evacuation Residents in Maple Hills, a rural community outside of Moncton, were warned on Sunday that they may need to evacuate their communities. "We haven't hit that threshold where we have to ask people to move." Herron said Monday. "If we feel that homes or people are at risk, that's the trigger." Provincial and municipal fire teams resumed their efforts to fight the fire there Monday around 6 a.m after taking a break overnight on Sunday, according to the community's Facebook page. According to the province's fire dashboard, the fire status remains out of control, and the size had reached at least 54 hectares. Herron said the province is focusing most of its resources on that area because of the large number of homes nearby. "This is the first fire that we've had that is still considered to be out of control that is near structures," he said. The potential evacuation zone near Moncton includes Weisner Road, Cape Breton Road, Lakeville and Lakeside Estates Mini Home Park, an area that the province estimates include 900 structures, most of which are homes. The community of Maple Hills directed its residents to check the New Brunswick Measures Organization Facebook page for information on a potential evacuation notice. Miramichi remains 'out of control' but being 'steered' The blaze, about 15 kilometres north of Miramichi, is still burning out of control as of Monday morning, according to Mayor Adam Lordon. According to the province's fire dashboard, the fire on Oldfield Road spans 340 hectares. Crews have been able to navigate the fire from spreading near homes but they are not able to get "out in front of it at this point in time." "So far, it's being steered away from structures," Herron said in an interview with CBC's Information Morning on Monday. In typical conditions, firefighting crews have about 30 minutes to be able to combat a fire that has just started, Herron said. But in these extreme dry conditions, the amount of time crews have reduces dramatically. "Right now, we need to be there within five or 10 minutes." Some residents near Miramichi were asked to evacuate the area last week, and 15 more homes are now on standby for a potential evacuation notice, Lordon said. People living in the city, further away from the fire, are also vigilant. "People understand that there's no imminent threat to their home at this time," he said. "They're concerned about the fact that it's out of control." Lordon suggests residents download the Voyent Alert app, which is free in any app store and used by municipalities across Canada to send notifications to residents in an emergency. Herron said crews have contained a fire that was burning out of control in Canterbury, a former village in York County. He added there are currently a total of 12 active fires across the province, but that "the vast majority" have been deemed under control and are being monitored so none of the embers comes alive again.
CBC
11 hours ago
- Climate
- CBC
Firefighters from P.E.I., N.S. and Maine arriving to battle wildfires in N.B.
Firefighters from Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Maine are being sent to New Brunswick to help the province fight active forest fires near Moncton and Miramichi. Minister of Natural Resources John Herron confirmed Monday that provincial fire teams are expecting the help of 30 firefighters total — 20 from P.E.I., five from N.S. and another five from Maine. "We made a request for 60, so we're already halfway there," Herron said in an interview Monday morning. "We're very heartened that [our] neighbours have have stepped up and offered help to us." The department could not confirm when crews would arrive, only that they will be deployed to either of the fires near Moncton or Miramichi depending on how they evolve. "We're usually the ones who actually send firefighters to other jurisdictions," Herron said. "For the first time, unprecedented, we've actually asked for boots on the ground here in New Brunswick." The province currently has two water bombers out on loan in Newfoundland, Herron said, which it recently sent to help battle wildfires there. But the province has borrowed two from Quebec that are supplementing resources. "We have two that are actually larger on loan for us to contest the wildfire in Oldfield," he said, referencing the fire near Miramichi that began Wednesday. Herron said the province also requested a Canadair CL-415, a large water bomber plane with a scoop to pick up water. While the province has received help through aerial supports like water bombers in the past, according to Herron, this is the first time it's made a formal request for help. Moncton community preparing for potential evacuation Residents in Maple Hills, a rural community outside of Moncton, were warned on Sunday that they may need to evacuate their communities. "We haven't hit that threshold where we have to ask people to move." Herron said Monday. "If we feel that homes or people are at risk, that's the trigger." Provincial and municipal fire teams resumed their efforts to fight the fire there Monday around 6:00 a.m. AT after taking a break overnight on Sunday, according to the community's Facebook page. According to the province's fire dashboard, the fire status remains out of control, and the size had reached at least 54 hectares. Herron said the province is focusing most of its resources on that area because of the large number of homes nearby. "This is the first fire that we've had that is still considered to be out of control that is near structures," he said. The potential evacuation zone near Moncton includes Weisner Road, Cape Breton Road, Lakeville and Lakeside Estates Mini Home Park, an area that the province estimates include 900 structures, most of which are homes. The community of Maple Hills directed its residents to check the New Brunswick Measures Organization Facebook page for information on a potential evacuation notice. Miramichi remains 'out of control' but being 'steered' The blaze, about 15 kilometres north of Miramichi, is still burning out of control as of Monday morning, according to Mayor Adam Lordon. According to the province's fire dashboard, the fire on Oldfield Road spans 340 hectares. Crews have been able to navigate the fire from spreading near homes but they are not able to get "out in front of it at this point in time." "So far, it's being steered away from structures," Herron said in an interview with CBC's Information Morning on Monday. In typical conditions, firefighting crews have about 30 minutes to be able to combat a fire that has just started, Herron said. But in these extreme dry conditions, the amount of time crews have reduces dramatically. "Right now, we need to be there within five or 10 minutes." Some residents near Miramichi were asked to evacuate the area last week, and 15 more homes are now on standby for a potential evacuation notice, Lordon said. People living in the city, further away from the fire, are also vigilant. "People understand that there's no imminent threat to their home at this time," he said. "They're concerned about the fact that it's out of control." Lordon suggests residents download the Voyent Alert app, which is free in any app store and used by municipalities across Canada to send notifications to residents in an emergency. Herron said crews have contained a fire that was burning out of control in Canterbury, a former village in York County. He added there are currently a total of 12 active fires across the province, but that "the vast majority" have been deemed under control and are being monitored so none of the embers comes alive again.
CBC
2 days ago
- Climate
- CBC
Premier to provide update on New Brunswick's wildfire situation
The New Brunswick government will give an update on the provincial wildfire situation at 2:30 p.m. AT Saturday. Premier Susan Holt, Minister of Natural Resources John Herron and Minister of Justice Rob McKee, on behalf of Public Safety, will take part. Roger Collet, a wildfire prevention officer, will also be answering questions. CBC will broadcast the livestream. As of Friday midnight, the DNR put a ban on forestry operations such as harvesting, forwarding, skidding, scarification, chipping and all pre-commercial thinning and cleaning on all forested Crown and private lands across the province. The ban on forestry operations will be in effect until midnight Aug. 12, the release said. Trucking, road construction and maintenance, vegetation management and tree planting are still allowed to continue, said the department. The entire province including provincial parks remain under a burn ban. A wildfire which broke out earlier in the week on Oldfield Road, about 16 kilometres north of Miramichi, has grown to approximately 160 hectares, New Brunswick's Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Nick Brown said in an email on Saturday morning. "Over the next several days, the province is expected to remain under extreme fire weather conditions, with high winds, high temperature, and low humidity. "It is a very dangerous situation with the state of fuels [ignitable materials in the forests]," said Brown. Two water bomber airplanes from Quebec are assisting with the ongoing extinguishing operation, he said. Fires that started on Friday in St. Paul and near Harvey are under control," Brown said. Highway 8 near Miramichi between Route 450 and Oldfield Road is currently closed, according to the New Brunswick Emergency Measures Organization. Russellville Road and McHardy Road are also closed with diversions in place.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Dry conditions taking a toll across New Brunswick, sparking new forestry restrictions
Worsening dry conditions across New Brunswick — which sparked a provincewide burn ban and led this week to an uncontrolled wildfire near Miramichi — have prompted the provincial government to impose restrictions on some industrial activities in forested areas. The Department of Natural Resources said in a news release Friday that some forestry operations would be banned for the next several days given the high risk of another wildfire. "I encourage everyone to take extreme precautions over the coming days and stay out of the forests if at all possible," said Natural Resources Minister John Herron in the release. From midnight on Aug. 8 to midnight on Aug. 12, harvesting, forwarding, skidding, scarification, chipping and all pre-commercial thinning and cleaning are all banned. That restriction applies to all forestry on both Crown and private lands. Trucking, road construction and maintenance, vegetation management and tree planting are allowed to continue. "The conditions and fire risk will continue to be monitored, and restrictions may need to be extended or additional restrictions put in place in some areas of the province," the release said. As of Friday, the entire province is under a burn ban, including in provincial parks. Except for the possibility of a shower Saturday afternoon in northern New Brunswick, the province could see at least six more days of dry, hot weather, according to Environment Canada forecasts. Daniel Boudreau, owner of Big Potato Silver Valley Farms in Maugerville, said the season has shifted from a rain-heavy spring to extremely dry conditions now. "It was just sink, sink everywhere you went. Now it's the complete opposite. Everything's just dust," Boudreau told CBC. He said the farm waited as long as they could but had to start using emergency irrigation to save their crops, which costs hundreds of dollars a day for staffing and equipment. "Usually we'll just kind of hit the more dire stuff and leave everything else," he said. "This year we did our cucumbers the other night, we're doing our cabbage and broccoli and cauliflower ... last night. And then I think we're going to start putting water on the squash and pumpkins." Lynn Cheeseman, president of New Brunswick Campground Owners Association, said her group is in complete support of the burn ban. "I mean, our campgrounds are surrounded by forests. You know, we have to respect that," she said, adding that some guests might be disappointed. "Especially overnight campers, it's a big thing for them. It's part of their plan when they come in is, you know, we'll get around the campfire, sing along and all that sort of stuff. But overall, I would say 99 per cent are understanding of what we need to do to protect our forests." On top of the burn ban, water restrictions are also in place for some communities, including Carquet, Tracadie, Dieppe and Woodstock. Woodstock Mayor Trina Jones said the situation for her town is tricky because they were already operating on one well with no backup system in place. "We know with dry conditions, we typically see spikes in water usage. We love our green lawns and people like to keep their cars clean and we like to do lots of fun outdoor activities that involve water," Jones said. "So we were anticipating the spike in water usage that right now I would say our system just simply cannot handle." The current level of Woodstock's ban restricts outdoor water use and non-essential water use for cleaning or filling pools. The municipality is currently developing a new well, but needs water use to remain low for a pump test of the new well next week. Jones said the municipality has been clear with residents about the challenges their water system faces, but acknowledged that some people may not always have it top of mind. "I'm sure any other municipality wouldn't want to be in this situation either," she said.
CBC
3 days ago
- Climate
- CBC
Dry conditions taking a toll across New Brunswick, sparking new forestry restrictions
Worsening dry conditions across New Brunswick — which sparked a provincewide burn ban and led this week to an uncontrolled wildfire near Miramichi — have prompted the provincial government to impose restrictions on some industrial activities in forested areas. The Department of Natural Resources said in a news release Friday that some forestry operations would be banned for the next several days given the high risk of another wildfire. "I encourage everyone to take extreme precautions over the coming days and stay out of the forests if at all possible," said Natural Resources Minister John Herron in the release. From midnight on Aug. 8 to midnight on Aug. 12, harvesting, forwarding, skidding, scarification, chipping and all pre-commercial thinning and cleaning are all banned. That restriction applies to all forestry on both Crown and private lands. Trucking, road construction and maintenance, vegetation management and tree planting are allowed to continue. "The conditions and fire risk will continue to be monitored, and restrictions may need to be extended or additional restrictions put in place in some areas of the province," the release said. As of Friday, the entire province is under a burn ban, including in provincial parks. Except for the possibility of a shower Saturday afternoon in northern New Brunswick, the province could see at least six more days of dry, hot weather, according to Environment Canada forecasts. Daniel Boudreau, owner of Big Potato Silver Valley Farms in Maugerville, said the season has shifted from a rain-heavy spring to extremely dry conditions now. "It was just sink, sink everywhere you went. Now it's the complete opposite. Everything's just dust," Boudreau told CBC. He said the farm waited as long as they could but had to start using emergency irrigation to save their crops, which costs hundreds of dollars a day for staffing and equipment. "Usually we'll just kind of hit the more dire stuff and leave everything else," he said. "This year we did our cucumbers the other night, we're doing our cabbage and broccoli and cauliflower ... last night. And then I think we're going to start putting water on the squash and pumpkins." Lynn Cheeseman, president of New Brunswick Campground Owners Association, said her group is in complete support of the burn ban. "I mean, our campgrounds are surrounded by forests. You know, we have to respect that," she said, adding that some guests might be disappointed. "Especially overnight campers, it's a big thing for them. It's part of their plan when they come in is, you know, we'll get around the campfire, sing along and all that sort of stuff. But overall, I would say 99 per cent are understanding of what we need to do to protect our forests." On top of the burn ban, water restrictions are also in place for some communities, including Carquet, Tracadie, Dieppe and Woodstock. Woodstock Mayor Trina Jones said the situation for her town is tricky because they were already operating on one well with no backup system in place. "We know with dry conditions, we typically see spikes in water usage. We love our green lawns and people like to keep their cars clean and we like to do lots of fun outdoor activities that involve water," Jones said. "So we were anticipating the spike in water usage that right now I would say our system just simply cannot handle." The current level of Woodstock's ban restricts outdoor water use and non-essential water use for cleaning or filling pools. The municipality is currently developing a new well, but needs water use to remain low for a pump test of the new well next week. Jones said the municipality has been clear with residents about the challenges their water system faces, but acknowledged that some people may not always have it top of mind.
