Firefighters could only watch and wait as Quidi Vidi stages burned, says platoon chief
Quick actions from locals saved one structure, who fought fire from boat
A member of the family who owns one of the historic fishing stages that survived Tuesday night's fire in Quidi Vidi gut is giving credit to the residents who worked to stop the fire's spread by boat.
St. John's Regional Fire Department crews were called to Quidi Vidi late Tuesday night after residents in the area noticed smoke coming from behind a fishing stage around 11:30 p.m. NT.
Located along Quidi Vidi's frequently photographed coastline, where historic wooden fishing stages stand on the cliffside and into the water, platoon Chief Mike Hall told CBC firefighters quickly realized they couldn't access the fire.
"We couldn't get trucks there, which is certainly frustrating for our fire department when you can't make a response," he told CBC.
"There's no way to get access with hose lines because it's on the other side of the water."
At that point it became a "controlled burn" and the fire consumed two fishing stages and wharf structures, said Hall.
Brad Gray said his great-grandfather built one of the fishing stages next to where the fire burned in the 1980s. It was used for the commercial fishery until the cod moratorium. Now, the family uses the structure for recreational fishing.
Gray credits residents for saving a piece of his family's history.
"It's basically irreplaceable. We could put something else back there, but my grandfather passed away now, so there's memories I have over there I'd never get back," Gray said, adding that he knows the individuals who owned the neighbouring fishing stages that were lost.
"So the middle one that was there, that looked a bit more like a cabin, that was Barry [Pittman's] stage. He sadly passed away last year.… The further one down is actually the Ring brothers, Alan and David."
Gray said their stage needed work but it was still used to fillet fish and their boats were often tied on.
As the flames approached a third structure, Hall said some residents jumped in a boat and went across the harbour with buckets and a hose connected to the boat's pump to fight the blaze.
By Wednesday morning, Hall said, the fire was "smouldering ashes."
"They doused the flames that were encroaching on their fishing stage and they actually put it out. So they saved their own building. It certainly would have been consumed if not through their efforts," said Hall.
The unreachable fire created some tense moments for firefighters.
Hall said his main concern was when the fire began to burn up the side of a hill, and was worried it could reach the east White Hills area and burn through it to the dry, wooded areas and potentially reach the RCMP detachment building.
"So really some cautious, tense moments for the firefighters and police," said Hall. "We basically watched it and crossed our fingers."
Hall said he called the forestry division manager, but was told they couldn't respond until daylight if they needed water bombers or helicopters.
He said he understands people were frustrated with their inability to respond to the fire, but no injuries have been reported.
The fire started just a few hours after the provincial government announced it was lifting the provincewide fire ban.
Download our free CBC News app to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Sign up for our daily headlines newsletter here. Click here to visit our landing page
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Sarah Blackmore, The St. John’s Morning Show, and Mark Quinn