Wildfire in Shelburne County, N.S., under control: municipality

A wildfire in the Little Harbour area of Shelburne County, N.S., is pictured on May 14, 2023. (Source: Facebook/Firefighters of Nova Scotia)

Emergency officials say the wildfire that broke out in Little Harbour in Shelburne County, N.S., Sunday afternoon is now under control.

Municipality of Shelburne CAO Warren MacLeod said the fire is now "down to embers" but 17 people had to be evacuated from several seasonal homes and cottages in the area.

"There was no structural damage to any homes," said MacLeod. "We did have a report earlier of a house being burnt but that has since been confirmed, that is no longer the case and there was no structural damage."

RCMP confirmed there was no structural damage reported from the wildfire but firefighters remain on the scene to deal with hotspots.

According to the province, the wildfire is estimated to be 10 hectares in size.

First responders included 13 DNRR staff, two DNRR helicopters, and 43 volunteer firefighters from Lockeport, Little Harbour, Shelburne and Sable River.

Shelburne resident Roddy Conrad said he was travelling down Litttle Harbour Road around 1:30 p.m. and noticed smoke in the area and it quickly grew out of control.

"Within 20 minutes that little puff of grey smoke was just billowing," said Conrad. "It grew quick and then the fire crews came in."

Conrad captured video from Litttle Harbour Road and said he heard a pair of explosions.

"The fire got into something," said Conrad.

In a tweet, DNRR said there are no confirmed reports of structural damage.

"DNRR crews, helicopters and volunteers will work until dark and be back in the morning to continue suppressing the fire," the tweet reads.

Unless there is a significant change to conditions, DNRR will provide its next update on Monday around 9 a.m.

MacLeod said police were going door-to-door to check in on residents in the area and were soon leaving the area around 10 p.m..

There is no word on what caused the wildfire.

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