Hickman's Harbour fire 'knocked down' but still out of control, says fire duty officer

A wildfire in Hickman's Harbour is still deemed out of control, says provincial fire duty officer Wesley Morgan. 

However, Morgan says that thanks to hard work from crews throughout Saturday afternoon, the fire has been significantly knocked down. 

"We did do a good solid aerial suppression and right now [there are still] ground crews in going around that fire," said Morgan. 

He says it is now 2 hectares in size.

 The two water bombers that were initially diverted to Hickman's Harbour have now returned to the ongoing wildfire in Chance Harbour, says Morgan. 

Around 2:00 p.m., Clarenville RCMP made a post on social media stating that they were evacuating cabins in Hickman's Harbour.

The RCMP were on scene and asked the public to avoid the area. 

The provincial Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture Department also made a post stating that two water bombers were diverted to the wildfire and that forestry crews were on the way. 

The province asked that people in the area pay attention to official channels, such as the RCMP, for information.

Morgan says there were two fire starts during Saturday afternoon, one in Hickman's Harbour, and one near Indian Meal Line which was put out by local fire departments.

At this time, Morgan is advising people to be extra cautious near wooded areas.

Chance Harbour fire continues

On July 18, there were 8 active wildfires across the province. Morgan says that number was brought down to 4 Saturday morning, but is now back up to 5 due to the fire in Hickman's Harbour. 

Ge says most of the province's firefighting efforts, including water bombers, were focused on the Chance Harbour and Hickman's Harbour fires. 

Morgan says there are now 3 water bombers, 1 bird dog plane, a helicopter and ground crew fire fighters who continue to fight the fire in Chance Harbour. 

On Saturday morning, the Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture Department made a post on social media providing an update on the fire. The post says that fire suppression efforts in Chance Harbour were favourable on July 18 and that ground suppression work continues on Saturday.

According to the province's active wildfire dashboard, the fire remains 1660 hectares in size, and the department confirmed in its post that the fire has grown over the past several days. 

Morgan says there have been no changes to the size of the fire. 

Additionally, the department says a sprinkler system remains active at "the pinch point on the south and southeast section of the wildfire," close to Jamestown and Winter Brook. They also write that the fire has not grown in the direction of those communities. 

"All residents of the province are reminded that a fire ban is in effect across Newfoundland and Labrador. Open fires are not permitted," writes the department in the post. 

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