wildfire burning in the Halifax area, but officials warn there’s a lot of work left to do.In an update Thursday morning, David Steeves, a technician of forest resources with the Department of Natural Resources and Renewables, said the fire in the Tantallon and Hammonds Plains area is about 50 per cent contained.“So that is a little bit of bright news, but that being said, we are far from being out of the woods,” said Steeves.“Just because we do have a level of percentage of containment does not mean that the … importance of safety in this situation has lowered.”The blaze broke out Sunday afternoon in the Tantallon area, about a 30-minute drive from downtown Halifax, and has since grown to about 837 hectares.
The fire has destroyed about 200 buildings, including 150 homes, and forced the evacuation of more than 16,400 people.On Wednesday evening, the evacuation order for the Indigo Shores subdivision was lifted.
However, Halifax Regional Municipality said people must remain on alert because the fire is still active in the area and residents are on a 30-minute evacuation notice for now.Steeves said although the fire is partially contained, it is still considered to be out of control and the hot, dry weather continues to pose a challenge.“We do not want to give a false sense of security so that folks think, ‘Well, everything is great in this particular area.’ That is not the reality,” he said.“The reality is that we are still dealing with a very, very volatile situation.”Environment Canada forecasts a high of 33 degrees in the Halifax area Thursday.
The high temperature coupled with low humidity leads to “crossover,” said Steeves – an indicator of extreme fire activity.Crossover means the fine fuels – leaves, twigs, and.