Grand Manan activates emergency plan

The Village of Grand Manan announced on August 12 that it was activating Level 1 of its Emergency Measures Plan in response to the dry conditions and fire risk. Level 1 is a precautionary measure that involves "enhanced monitoring of conditions and increased readiness."

CAO Chris Rayner says Level 1 doesn't mean a lot for residents but puts the village "on the board with the province" as having identified increased risk. It means "our emergency ops volunteers are on high alert" for a potential Level 2. In the event of escalation, they can run an emergency operations centre from the village office and identify what areas need attention, such as police, firefighters, ambulance and Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Volunteers can go door‑to‑door if evacuation is needed and can apply window stickers to indicate a house has been cleared.

The community centre could be opened as a shelter. Any evacuations would depend on where the fire is and associated risks. An August 15 village statement reads, "If the entire island had to be evacuated by ferry only, we estimate it would take approximately 24 hours. We have identified options to speed up the process if that is required." As long as Route 776 is accessible, staged evacuations for vulnerable residents and those closest to a fire are possible. "If parts of the island are cut off because Route 776 is not accessible, we have contingency plans to reach those residents."

Rayner says DNR asked to be notified if the fire department is called to any type of fire so they may be prepared for potential spread. All are aware that Grand Manan is "in the middle of nowhere" with "little to no outside support," Rayner says. While they have mutual aid agreements with mainland fire departments, the quickest help would be air support. He says 14 water bombers are in the province, but their availability would depend on activity elsewhere.

The fire department relies on brooks, currently at very low levels, as well as three 15,000‑gallon filling stations at the fire hall, North Head and Seal Cove. They can reload from the ponds at Anchorage; however, Deputy Chief Dave Burgess says these are also very low. He's observed kayaks bottoming out at Great Pond, which is more typically three feet deep. Rayner adds that salt water could be used in an emergency but would require thorough flushing of equipment afterward.

Burgess confirms a couple of close calls recently, with a fire on Wood Island that was quickly controlled and one on Crabbe Road that someone fortunately spotted before it could spread. He agrees Grand Manan would be mostly on its own fighting a wildfire. They could only get trucks so far into the woods, and it would be "a lot of lugging" with trailers and hoping to find a water hole. He says, "A lot of people don't realize how much drier it is here compared to the mainland" because Grand Manan gets less rain; and lifting the provincial fire ban won't necessarily mean Grand Manan's woods aren't still too dry.

Provincial crown land was officially closed on August 10. This was followed on the same date by some private property owners closing the Red Trail from Swallowtail to Whale Cove beach. The Anchorage boardwalk and trails as well as Nature Trust properties are also closed.

A strong smoke smell across the island on August 16 had firefighters exploring on foot and with drones until they determined it was from mainland fires, settling close to the ground because of cooler temperatures. While the rain on August 17 was welcome, fire bans remain in effect. The ground is "powder," Burgess observes. Islander Chris Spicer is working on organizing a group of drone operators to watch for fires and log flights in cooperation with the fire department. His information may be found on the Grand Manan Bulletin Board Facebook page.

Residents are urged to register for the Voyent Alert system with accurate addresses, because the system can send targeted messages to specific areas. Unusual smoke or signs of wildfire should be reported to authorities.