Latest news with #SmallPoint
CBC
12-05-2025
- General
- CBC
C.B.N fire shows still ‘a lot of work to be done' on cell service coverage, says new N.L. tech minister
Steve Crocker is the MHA for the area that saw 12 homes destroyed in a wildfire. Residents of Small Point–Adam's Cove–Blackhead–Broad Cove say a scary situation was made even worse because of poor, and in some cases, zero, cell reception.
CBC
12-05-2025
- General
- CBC
C.B.N. community members reflect on forest fire damage
The fires are out and the phone lines are being repaired in C.B.N., according to the North Shore Volunteer Fire Department. Restoration efforts are underway after wildfire burned through the community of Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove, destroying 12 homes. Now, the community pulls together as they navigate the damage.
CBC
11-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
C.B.N. community starts looking forward as forest fire restoration efforts continue
Days after a wildfire tore through the community of Small Point-Adam's Cove-Blackhead-Broad Cove, residents are still dealing with shock as they try to move forward. Roger Gillingham, chief of the North Shore Volunteer Fire Department, says all the fires are out and they're getting a sense of the damage to the community. He says a total of 45 structures were destroyed by the fire, including 12 permanent and seasonal homes. The remaining buildings include outbuildings, sheds, and garages. "The dangers with respect to the fire itself have been taken care of," he said. Now, he says the community is concerned about the quality of drinking water, and the air quality. "We can still smell that burn," he added. As for the cause of the fire, Gillingham said it's still unknown. He said fire investigators have been to the town, but he hasn't heard anything from them yet, and isn't sure if he will. He said around this time of year the department typically assesses the potential for bush fires and grass fires in the community. "I don't think we ever dreamed that we'd see something like this," he said. Phone services also went down in the community during the fire, impacting the fire department's pager system, which is used for essential communication during emergencies. While services are still down for some homeowners, Gillingham says they were lucky that Bell was able to come to the town yesterday to repair their paging system. In an emailed statement, Bell Public Affairs Manager Patricia Garcia told CBC News, "We now have the all clear to start restoration efforts to repair the extensive damage to our critical infrastructure caused by the forest fire." Garcia said that the community's emergency services line was restored, and that their teams are working to restore remaining services swiftly and safely. Community centre support The town's community centre has become a hub of community support, says Broad Cove resident Wanda Crocker. Crocker has been helping people at the Salem Community Centre since Wednesday. She says residents' who have lost their homes have had their most immediate needs taken care of, thanks to an outpouring of support and donations from the community and local businesses. On Saturday, Crocker said Eastern Health and mental health support services were also at the centre to help people affected by the fires. "Having this place to connect with people through this tragedy has been a real blessing." Days after the fire started, the tragedy of what happened is starting to kick in for residents, said Crocker. "This is starting to feel like really real," she said. Small-Point Adam's Cove mayor, Curtis Delaney, says the wildfire was a tragedy and has had a major impact on the community. But despite this, he says people have now started looking forward. Some people are contemplating rebuilding their homes, he said, if they have the resources to do so. "It's going to take months and years for Adam's Cove to return to even some resemblance of what it was," said Delaney.
CBC
09-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Adam's Cove fire under control, damage assessment still to come, says mayor
State of emergency is still in effect with no timeline for residents to return home A wildfire that forced residents of a rural Newfoundland community to flee their homes was pushed back on Thursday, and is now under control — but the mayor warns rebuilding will take some time as a damage assessment gets underway. The town of Small Point-Broad Cove-Blackhead-Adam's Cove has been under a state of emergency since Wednesday night. More than 20 buildings have been damaged or destroyed, the provincial government said on Thursday, including at least 12 homes. "There's going to be a lot of cleanup. There's a lot of assessment that needs to be done in the area and that'll be the priority now in the upcoming days," Mayor Curtis Delaney told CBC Radio's The St. John's Morning Show. The mayor said he's not positive when residents will be able to return to the community, and hot spots are being monitored over the next few days. "Before anyone goes back into that area, it has to be a safe situation," said Delaney. Newfoundland Power, which had shut off power to the area on Wednesday, was on the scene on Thursday for an assessment. "You can imagine there's a bit of infrastructure damage on their end," Delaney said. The cause of the fire isn't yet known and the investigation will likely start soon, the mayor said. "We can't do anything to bring back some of the structures that have been lost," he said. "But you know, we'll work with them and with different levels of government and see what assistance and what resources that we can provide as a town and as a province." Resources for people evacuated There are still resources in place to help those who have been affected by the fire, says Delaney, including the Small Point Community Centre. The Red Cross and Salvation Army have been offering help since Thursday. The school in Western Bay is also acting as a reception area. "We've actually had an outpouring of support, you know, not only just from the local area, but from outside," Delaney said. "It's just amazing how the area has come together." Delaney says he's thankful to the emergency responders and the work of the countless volunteers who stepped up to help with food and shelter. "Everyone that has come together, and as bad a situation is, things could have been a lot worse. We're just focusing on safety right now." he said. "We'll get people back in as quickly as we can."
CBC
09-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Fleeing C.B.N. fire was like 'the gates of hell opened,' Adam's Cove resident says
Sitting in the safety of the Salem Community Centre in Small Point, N.L., Richard Hayward of Adam's Cove compares fleeing his home to fleeing from hell. "You see the whole community on fire right around you … It's the gates of hell opened up," Hayward told Radio-Canada on Thursday. "Within 10 minutes, I see the fire coming. Coming down, and the rise and the blazes, I'd say it was a couple hundred feet high." Hayward was one of many residents in the town of Small Point-Broad Cove-Blackhead-Adam's Cove running from an out of control wildfire. The fire was deemed contained on Thursday afternoon, as crews dealt with remaining hot spots. The fire burned as large as about 600 hectares. The town has been under a state of emergency since Wednesday night. More than 20 buildings have been damaged or destroyed, the provincial government said on Thursday, including at least 12 homes. Hayward's home still stands, he said, but his shed was lost. "It came right to the road to my place and went right around my boundary line. Good thing I had my grass cut low, that's what the firefighter said. That's what saved my place," he said. Scott Penney lives down the road from Hayward. He says he smelled smoke in his home on Wednesday afternoon and quickly evacuated with his family. "By the time I got up to the end of the track to see [about] my neighbours and get them, all was engulfed. My front yard, my neighbours house in front of me, that was all gone," Penney said. "Our town of Adam's Cove is gone." Penney said he hopes insurance companies can respond to the damage quickly, but rebuilding will be a challenging process. "We've got a population of 52 people, and now we got seniors with their house gone. How are they going to rebuild?" Wildfire evacuation earlier than past years The evacuation isn't the first of its kind in Newfoundland and Labrador, but could be among the earliest in recent history. Newfoundland's forest fire season typically runs from the end of April to the end of September. In Labrador it's around mid-May to the end of September. Last year, Labrador communities dealt with the same large-scale evacuation because of wildfires. Churchill Falls was evacuated on June 19, and Labrador City did the same just weeks later. In 2022, large-scale forest fires in the Bay d'Espoir area prompted a state of emergency that lasted nearly a week that August. Newfoundland and Labrador's active wildfire dashboard, which tracks the size and status of fires, reported 96 in 2024. As of Thursday, there have been 58 reported wildfires so far in 2025. "I'm very concerned," Jeff Motty, provincial forest fire duty officer, told CBC's Here & Now on Thursday, adding parts of the province are abnormally dry for this time of year. "Here we are, May 8, with 607 hectares [burned] on the books already. I just kind of look at every fire season as different, and I'm hopeful, you know, the rain's going to come."
