(Labrador City, NL) Firefighters began attacking a wildfire near Labrador City from the ground on Thursday, marking another step in efforts to bring the roaring wildfire under control.
Crews have been putting out the flames from the air using water bombers and helicopters, but Jeff Motty, the province’s wildfire officer, said adding a ground attack is an important step in fighting any wildfire.
“Once we can get firefighters on the ground safely, that’s how a fire can be extinguished,” he said in an interview. “It’s the troops on the ground who ultimately put out the fires.”
Labrador City has a population of more than 7,000 people. They were ordered to evacuate last week after a sudden change in conditions reignited the smoldering fire. The flames moved quickly toward the town.
The town was the second in the region to be evacuated due to wildfires in as many months. Residents of Churchill Falls in central Labrador were ordered to leave their homes on June 19. They were allowed to return two weeks later.
The fire that threatened Churchill Falls was officially extinguished on Thursday, Mr Motty announced.
About 20 New Brunswick firefighters were on the ground Thursday morning to flood hot spots in western Labrador near Labrador City, he added. He expects they will soon be joined by colleagues from Newfoundland and Labrador, who arrived in the area Wednesday evening.
Ground crews had to be airlifted into the area and firefighters spent a lot of time on Wednesday cleaning up landing spots, Motty said.
The size of the fire remained at about 131 square kilometres, and it remained about six kilometres from the city, Motty said.
Meanwhile, the provincial forestry department has urged people not to fly drones in the fire area as they could interfere with water bombers and helicopters.
“Water bombers play a crucial role in controlling and extinguishing wildfires, and their pilots must operate in clear and open airspace,” the ministry said in a press release.
“Unauthorized drone activity can interfere with these operations, potentially causing delays in firefighting efforts and endangering the lives of firefighters and pilots.”