Forestry officials say conditions have improved, and a massive fire that came within feet of the hydro plant in Churchill Falls is no longer threatening residents or infrastructure.
While the fire, which is approximately 169 hectares in size, is still listed as out of control, it is no longer showing large plumes of smoke and a wall of flame like as the case last night.
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Fire Duty Officer Craig Coady tells VOCM News that conditions are favourable with winds blowing from the west, pushing the fire away from Churchill Falls.
Three helicopters are working on the fire with two waterbombers on standby in Goose Bay should if flare up again.
In the meantime, ground crews are now working on the fire, with favourable weather conditions in the forecast over the next few days.
Current situation far different from that in Labrador last year
Last year, the winds were not favourable and Churchill Falls had to evacuate on short notice with a wildfire threatening. This time, the winds were pushing the fire eastward, away from the town and the massive hydro plant.
At one point yesterday, it came within feet of the plant says local resident Robert Dawe.
He says as long as the winds don’t change, they’re safe in terms of air quality.
“Everybody was rushing last night, getting their vehicles filled up with fuel and packing their bags just like we did almost a year ago when we had to evacuate,” says Dawe. “Everyone was pretty tense and my phone was blowing up with people asking about the fire, the road…”
Government has instituted a ban on outdoor burning in all of Labrador. Premier John Hogan says due to the high fire risk in the big land, government already had two water bombers on standby.
Hogan says two water bombers were on the ground ready to go in case a fire broke out. One of the aircraft came from Wabush while the other was flown in from Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
