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Overview of 2007 Forest Fire Season
The 2007 Forest fire season on the island portion of the
province started May 5, while the season for Labrador
commenced two weeks later on May 19. The season remained
in effect for both the island and Labrador until
September 23.
The 2007 forest fire season in Newfoundland and Labrador
was below the ten-year average in fire starts and
hectares burnt. Despite this, fire suppression efforts
proved challenging at times, particularly in Labrador.
Forest Fire Activity on the Island
The island portion of the province experienced normal
spring conditions early in April. However for the
remainder of April, some regions on the island
experienced cooler temperatures than normal for that
time of the year. This was attributed to severe ice
conditions that developed along the north east coast as
strong onshore winds were coupled with cool temperatures
in April.
In May temperatures began to rise and the number of fire
starts increased accordingly. This was especially true
on the Avalon Peninsula where fires are common this time
of year due to Spring surface drying. In fact, 67% of
fires recorded on the Island were recorded by the end of
June.
While there was concern the Island may have experienced
a very busy fire season wet weather and high humidity
reduced the risk for forest fire starts. These weather
conditions continued into August and September months.
Forest Fire Activity in
Labrador
Spring weather conditions in Labrador were warm and dry
resulting in some early fire starts. However, throughout
July and August there were no extended periods of warm
and dry weather as warm periods were usually followed by
precipitation. Therefore, fire starts remained lower
than average. This year 11 fire starts in Labrador were
attributed to lightning storms.
Two forest fires in Labrador proved to be challenging.
The first fire happened on June 16 near the Town of
Happy Valley-Goose Bay in close proximity to many homes.
However, the timely response of fire crews enabled the
fire to be brought under control before any damage to
people or property.
The other fire occurred near the community of Natuashish.
At one point, the community was placed under an
evacuation order as the fire posed an imminent threat to
residents. However, the efforts of forest fire
suppression staff successfully brought the fire under
control before causing damage.
Forest Fire Fighting Resources
In 2007, the Department of Natural Resources continued
to operate its fleet of six (6) CL-215 air tankers. They
were strategically located throughout the province
provide for timely responses to forest outbreaks.
Four light helicopters, under contract to the Provincial
Government, were assigned to forest fire standby each
day during the fire season. A fifth helicopter dedicated
soley to forest fire suppression was located in Labrador
during the peak period of the forest fire season. The
province also operated one Cessna 337 Skymaster spotter
aircraft.
Mutual Assistance and Resource
Sharing (MARS) Agreement
Newfoundland and Labrador along with under jurisdictions
in the country contribute to the MARS agreement. During
the 2007 forest fire season the province shared the
following resources with other provinces to assist them
with fire suppression activity.
Aircraft Loaned to Dates
| 1 CL-215 |
Nova Scotia
|
May 9 - 16 |
| 2 CL-215
|
New Brunswick |
May 9 - 11
|
| 2 CL-215
|
Ontario |
May 12 - 19 |
| 2 CL-215 |
Quebec |
May 25 - 31 |
| 1 CL-215 |
Quick Strike, QC
|
June 14 |
2007 Forest Fire Statistics
Total Fires
| Region |
Number |
| Eastern |
43 |
| Western |
12 |
| Labrador |
32 |
| Total |
87 |
Area and Forest Type
| Region |
Total Area (hectares) |
Productive |
Non-productive |
| Eastern |
54.9 |
2.3 |
52.6 |
| Western |
37.9 |
2.0 |
35.9 |
| Labrador |
10,799.0 |
0 |
10,799.0 |
| Total |
10,891.8 |
4.3 |
10,887.5 |
Fire Occurrence
| Cause |
Number |
| Lightning |
11 |
| Resident |
54 |
| Forestry |
1 |
| Other Industry |
1 |
| Incendiary |
5 |
| Recreation |
9 |
| Garbage Dump |
2 |
| Misc. |
4 |
| Total |
87 |
Forest Fire Management Training
Programs
During 2007 staff training was provided to staff
throughout the Newfoundland and Labrador Forest Service
(NLFS).
An Incident Command System (ICS) 200 course was offered
to 21 Newfoundland and Labrador Forest Service staff
while 22 staff participated in a S300 Incident Commander
Extended Attack course.
Forest fire fighting training packages were prepared for
emergency fire fighters, municipal fire fighters and
forest industry workers. These training packages will be
used to provide training to forest fire fighting
professional and volunteer fire departments and forestry
related companies in the province, i.e. sawmills.
Forest fire dispatchers attended a fire management
workshop in September which was intended to develop
standards and procedures aimed at enhancing the
provincial forest fire program.
A one week Crew Leader course was attended by 25 forest
fire staff in the spring of 2007. This course provided
valuable training in the areas of forest fire safety,
forest fire regulations, fire equipment and
communications.
Prescribed Burns
There were two prescribed burning projects in 2007. Both
occurred in Western
Newfoundland in September and resulted in treatment of
over 300 hectares of recently harvested forest area. The
prescribed burns were done as part of silviculture
management activity to prepare sites for the planting of
new tree seedlings. Prescribed burns provide two
benefits as they give new fire staff valuable experience
and represent an economical means of preparing sites for
planting.
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