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View of the fire from Williams Lake Rd. about one hour into the incident.
Shortly before 4 p.m. on Victoria Day, our dispatch centre began getting multiple calls of heavy smoke in the woods in the Colpitt Lake and Williams Lake area in Purcells Cove.
First-in units soon discovered a rapidly progressing forest fire in a large heavily wooded area between the two lakes. Initial crews gained access to the heel of the fire by hiking in with hose and portable pumps from Colpitt Lake Rd. Within a very short time, smoke from the growing fire was visible from all over the city.
Our shift commander, Platoon Chief Scot Shaffner, arrived and assumed command. He brought in additional manpower and requested firefighting helicopters from the Department of Natural Resources. They had three in the area and sent them all, along with ground crews. As is usual in these operations, our incident commander and DNR set up a joint command structure to manage the incident. Off duty chiefs were called in to take charge of various sectors.
It became obvious that although the fire was not near any homes, it was progressing so rapidly that it could quickly become a threat along part of the Purcells Cove Rd. and so about 50 homes were evacuated. Meantime the unified command used fire crews to flank the fire on the ground, while the helicopters dumped thousands of gallons of water from the air. We also had rescue boats in the water to transport firefighters and gear to the scene more quickly.
By nightfall the fire was contained and with heavy rain that night and on Tuesday, the fire was considered all but out. A smouldering tree was found on Wednesday and was extinguished.
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On Halls Rd., where Command was temporarily set up, firefighters Scott MacKellar of Engine 3 and Kim Slaunwhite of Quint 7 track units on the accountability board.
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Shrouded by smoke, Quint 7 firefighters Chris Gaudet (left) and Harry Creamer keep an eye on the fire from the end of Halls Rd, off Purcells Cove Rd. High winds were blowing firebrands toward this shore and so some homes in this area were among those evacuated.
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Firefighters Dan Nelson (left) and Nick Foshay of Brush 17 launch a rescue boat at Williams Lake. The volunteer crew from Cole Harbour had been helping to fight a forest fire in the Caldwell Rd. area that had broken out the previous day. When they became available, they were dispatched straight to the Purcells Cove fire.
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