At approximately 2:00 pm on Monday, August 4th, the Holyrood Fire Department were dispatched to a brush fire with open flame in a wooded area located at Moosey Meadows and the house to the east; 88 Conception Bay Highway. There was serious concern for the health and safety of the residents in the area and an immediate evacuation of the residents of Moosey Meadows as well as residents east of Beaumont Place to the bridge including Duff’s Road, and Green Acres.
Residents were sent to the Conception Bay South Arena.
The Emergency Plan for the Town was enacted, and we were assigned the assistance of a Regional Emergency Management and Planning Officer in the person of Devin Reid. As directed by the emergency plan the town engaged in regular updates from all relevant government departments led by the Provincial Emergency Operations Command.
Forestry was the lead on the execution plan to deal with the fire, and the Holyrood Fire Department, supported by Central Avalon Ground Search and Rescue, were the boots on the ground protecting the town.
At 9:00pm – August 4th, Mayor Goobie declared a partial state of emergency for the affected areas from Beaumont Place to the bridge at the Holyrood entrance from CBS, including Green Acres and Duff’s Road. An evacuation order was also signed, and Central Avalon Ground Search & Rescue began knocking on doors to ensure people were out safely. The Town began its communication process through Voyant messaging, and social media to ensure all residents were aware of the status of the fire and were prepared in the event the emergency extended.
At the same time, the HFD continued to work with the Department of Forestry to battle the fire. They were courageous and determined. They were focused on what they had been trained to do and conducted their fight with the assurance they had one goal: protect the residents of Holyrood and prevent any loss of structures and to do so in a safe, secure manner.
The Holyrood Fire Department provided overall fire command for the affected area in Holyrood, Central Avalon Ground Search & Rescue provided command of ground resources, and CBS fire department assisted with coordination and staging of regional departments who offered support to the effort.
August 5th, there was a heightened concern for the safety of residents beyond the already in place evacuation, and at 3:05pm on August 5th the evacuation order increased including residents of 377 CBH to our CBS boundary . A full state of emergency was enacted for the Town. Given the increased evacuee numbers, residents were now sent to Villenova Junior High in CBS.
Despite encountering several challenges, including effective management of water supply with low levels in our municipal tank, breakdowns of apparatus due significant demand being put on the trucks, strain on equipment and supplies, extreme temperatures, the need for pet evacuations and animal welfare, and many others, our department members and those from our region as well as the dedicated Central Avalon Ground Search & Rescue demonstrated true resilience, grit, and determination to protect our community with everything they had, and all challenges were overcome with ease and efficiency.
The fire had grown to 22ha and we had 925 residents evacuated from their home.
The Emergency Response team continued to meet three times a day to assess the conditions of the fire as determined by the various government departments and agencies. We continued to allow the experts in emergency response assist us in deciding the appropriate methods of attack and to make decisions based on the safety of life and property.
Hotspots and flare ups, including those at Island Pond did not deter the team from focusing on the immediate goal of safety and control. The modeling and direction of the Provincial Emergency Operations Command provided the necessary information to make sound decisions based on science, safety and strategy. Our crew believed in their training and in themselves as firefighters and acted accordingly.
On August 8th, our Town was in a position where the Emergency Operations Center, following the guidance of the Provincial Emergency Operations Command, could request the Mayor to rescind the evacuation order to reduce the areas affected.
On August 9th, we were grateful that we could rescind the evacuation order totally and terminate the State of emergency with no injury to people and no loss of structures of any kind.
The Holyrood fire continues to be classified by the Department of Forestry as “Under Control” until such time that the department can actually have crews walk that area, it will not be reclassified- and that is for our protection.
We have many people to thank starting with our very own dedicated fire fighters, Central Avalon Ground Search & Rescue, the Provincial Emergency Management team, our neighboring fire departments who did not hesitate to come to our aid, and this whole community for their support, prayers and goodwill as we fought this beast. Appropriate thank you will be forth coming once we have an opportunity to do a complete debrief of our emergency response. For now, we simply say thank you – you have done well to remind us all of the humanity and kindness which exists around us.
To those communities still battling fire, we offer our help in every way we can. We will continue to pray for the safety of all residents in those affected communities, while we give grateful thanks for the safety of our town.
The final word tonight is to our residents. This is not the end of our story, it’s a chapter – as we look into the days ahead and we have clarity on the events of the last weeks there will be many bouquets of thanks which will be extended. The greatest bouquet is to you, our residents. Thank you for your unselfish kindness and support to our firefighters, thank you for your understanding and quick response when we asked you to leave your home, thank you for your help with our water woes and thank you for standing with us to defeat one of the most frightening and serious events in this town’s recent history.
A town is a municipality – a boundary set for governing purpose; a community is a gathering of people with similar values and It’s a place where people interact, build relationships, and develop a sense of belonging. The Town of Holyrood is an amazing community. Thank you to everyone.