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Tuesday, July 7, 2015
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A BC Forest Service water bomber drops retardent on a grass fire on Cedar Road, east of Nanaimo Airport. Several fire departments, including Ladysmith and Chemainus, responded to the blaze, which qickly spread to 20 hectacres of hay fields and threatened a nearby forest. About a dozen homes in the area were evacuated, and the Ladysmith Emergency Centre was activated at the height of the incident, which is believed to have been caused by an overheated bearing or sparks from metal blades making contact with rocks during hay harvesting. Teresa McKinley
Grass fire forces Cedar evacuations Craig Spence
“It took forever,” he said. “Of course been left with an impression of just how when you want things to happen, they vulnerable communities in the path of don’t happen as quick as you’d like, but a wildfire are, and how unpredictable a There’s two things Ray Rinta stands in we could see the flames getting higher wildfire can be. “I thought everything was under control,” awe of, after a raging grass fire leapt a ditch and higher, and moving fast, and the wind he said, surveying the charred fields in his back yard the evening of July 2, and picked up and man it was travelling.” One of a dozen or so homeowners to be from his back yard. “I was rolling up that started burning its way through his hay field toward his home in Cedar: the seemingly evacuated during the incident, Rinta was hose right there, when there was a police unstoppable power of a runaway wildfire; roused from a snooze on the sofa after officer standing there and he said ‘You’ve and the rallying of his community – includ- a family outing. He awakened to a very got to evacuate.’,” Rinta recounted. He, his wife and two grandchildren ing forestry service fire fighters, local fire bad dream. “We had visions of this taking off and didn’t have to make use of Ladysmith’s departments, and volunteer citizens – to sparks shooting up to the house,” he said, Emergency Social Services Centre, stop the seemingly unstoppable. When he reported the fire at about hours after returning to his property which was activated during the incident 5 p.m. he was told others had already when the evacuation notice was lifted – they stayed with family – but he was called it in, and that crews were on their next day. “They were talking about bring- amazed at the responsiveness of the proway. But when Armageddon is unfold- ing two big tanker trucks in to spray fessional fire fighters and his community, battling the blaze. ing in your back yard, seconds seem like down the house.” It didn’t come to that, but Rinta has minutes; minutes, hours. See Grass Fire, Page 3 Ray Rinta: Grass fire to close for comfort. the chronicle
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