Bocabec And Chamcook Forest Fire Evacuees Return Home To Devastation

The wildfire that raged through Bocabec and Chamcook starting Sunday afternoon was reduced to 220 hotspots by Tuesday afternoon. Although it is still an active fire and the largest of the 15 active fires in New Brunswick, evacuated residents were able to return home as of 2pm on Tuesday.

"I can't believe we still have a home to come to," said Judy Johnson, after returning to her home at Bocabec Cove. Her house is still standing, but her motorcycle was totally destroyed by the fire. "This is just decimated around here, and I can't believe the fire crews have done what they've done." 

Although only one home was lost so far in the fire, the damage to parts of the natural landscape is devastating, in some locations more than others.

2 bulldozers are now on site helping firefighters gain access to hard to reach remote locations with a concentration on the northeastern part of the fire scene. Despite having more control over the blaze, the wildfire is technically still designated as "out of control," and Public Safety Minister Kris Austin says re-evacuating residents is an ongoing possibility, especially with temperatures expected to be above the 30 degree Celcius on Wednesday and Thursday coupled with sustained southwesterly winds of 15-20km with gusts up to 40km. Air quality is being monitored in the region, and at this point in time no alarms have been triggered.

Waterbombers continue to play an important role in stabilizing the fire. 7 water bombers in total, plus a bird dog, flew over 80 hours on Monday to establish fire retardent lines along the edges of the fire to prevent the spread.

208 people registered with Red Cross in total during the evacuation, representing 86 households, and while almost all are able to return home, one family who lost everything have no home to return. A GoFundMe page has been started by a family friend to help them start over, and Austin says Disaster Relief unfortunately doesn't apply in these circumstances.

"We do rely on individual homeowners to have their own house insurance should an incident like this happen," said Austin. 
Up to 13 fire departments across southwest New Brunswick have been fighting the fire, many of them volunteers, some of them evacuees. Paula Ross of Chamcook says her daughter Emily and husband Jim both volunteer for the Saint Andrews fire department and, while they can return home tonight, have been fighting the fire while also not being able to return home.

Premier Higgs made a special trip to St. Andrews on Monday to meet with first responders and evacuees alongside St. Croix MLA Kathy Bockus.

And while it looks like the worst is over, only time will tell if the fire will soon be deemed under control.