Fire crews are continuing to combat two still-smouldering fires on South Thormanby Island, after the blazes were reported last night (Tuesday, Aug. 24).
Fire Information Officer Donna MacPherson with Coastal Fire Centre said the Coast Guard reported the first blaze - a cabin fire - at approximately 11 p.m.
"We sent a crew over by hovercraft through search and rescue," she said. "We weren't able to use helicopters that late at night because it was dark."
The crew starting building a guard around the 30 by 50 metre cabin fire by clearing debris and digging down to mineral soil, so as to stop the fire from spreading. With the fire contained, she said, they worked to put it out.
While the crew was combating the cabin fire the Coast Guard reported a second fire on the island, approximately one km away from the first fire location. The fire crew proceeded to combat that fire also - a forest fire measuring approximately 20 by 15 metres. On Wednesday morning, a second crew was dispatched to help speed up the efforts at both sites.
As of Wednesday morning, the fires are described as "rank one," meaning that there's smoking ground. Two fire crews are still on the island working towards getting the fires completely out.
The fires are thought to be human-caused and are under investigation.
