The Lake George Wildfire remains out of control, covering an area of approximately 288 hectares since yesterday’s update by Department of Natural Resources.
Despite heavy winds, crews have been able to get lots of work done and have been successful in minimizing growth to date.
Crews have returned to the fire this morning and will continue working with hopes that precipitation will aid significantly in the ongoing effort.
Dozens of wildland firefighters from Nova Scotia DNR and British Columbia worked in the woods yesterday with hose lines.
Four Department of Public Works tanker trucks, holding anywhere from 7,000 gallons to 8,000 gallons per load, were steady, shuttling water to supply these crews working on hand lines via ground in the woods.
The Waterville & District Volunteer Fire Department Big Flow was tasked with supplying these trucks and filled 15 semi-tankers throughout the day.
Helicopters continued to make water drops on precise locations around the fire perimeter, while fixed wing aircraft remained at Greenwood base yesterday and most likely today as well.
Volunteer firefighters pulled an overnight shift last night on the fire grounds, monitoring wind gusts and maintaining structural protection equipment as a precaution.
There are a number of volunteer fire departments who are assisting with wetting down vegetation to create humidity bubbles and working to supply sprinklers in place for structural protection while also maintaining these.
Many sprinklers are currently supplied directly by pumps from Lake George, which has reduced the need for a plethora of tanker trucks shuttling water to supply these.
Despite the winds, fire conditions have been overall better than projected and continuous progress will continue today with much anticipated rain expected this afternoon and evening.
⚠️ Please Note: This does not mean the fire is under control, the fire is still classified as out of control and efforts continue.
There have been no reported structures damaged to date. Measures to protect homes, camps and many other important infrastructures like bridges continue.
Heavy machinery continues to aid in the effort on the ground, working to create fire breaks around the perimeter of the fire.
There were two areas of concern that popped up yesterday, on satellite and visible from the North Mountain looking over at the fire.
Smoke and hot spots popped up on the East Side where dozer guards appear to be complete from satellite. Smoke and hot spots were also visible on the West Side where helicopters have been spending a good amount of time dropping water.
No significant smoke has been visible in the past couple of days, which is a good sign, but there is still lots of work to be done, and it’s crucial to receive rain and get through the next few gusty days.
There does not appear to be any significant growth since the last report by DNR from sources and satellite.
Wind gusts are likely to continue throughout the day today and overnight, calming down by Friday, which could result in some increased fire behaviour.
All evacuations and road closures to date remain in place.
Offical DNR update is expected at midday today.
Adrian J.
