New BrunswickTwo wildfires are listed as out of control, according to the government’s fire watch, on Thursday morning. Two others that were out of control earlier in the day have since been contained.2 fires in Miramichi area still out of controlHannah Rudderham · CBC News · Posted: Aug 14, 2025 6:25 AM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours agoPlumes of smoke could be seen Wednesday by the roadblock north of the fire in Miramichi. (Pierre Fournier/CBC)Two New Brunswick wildfires are listed as out of control Thursday morning, according to the provincial government’s fire watch, including a nearly 1,400-hectare fire that is in its ninth day.The Oldfield Road fire in the Miramichi area has been burning for over a week and is currently blazing through 1,358 hectares of land.Earlier Thursday morning, three new out-of-control fires were listed on the government’s fire watch website, but two of those have since been downgraded to “contained.”The new out-of-control fire is just northwest of the one in Miramichi near the old Heath Steele Mine. Deemed the Chief’s fire, it encompasses 25 hectares and was detected around 3 p.m. AT Wednesday.The Maple Glen fire, located west of Miramichi and northwest of Natoaganeg, or Eel Ground First Nation, was downgraded to a contained wildfire at 5.5 hectares mid-morning on Thursday.Another small fire, just west of Bathurst, was also listed as out of control Thursday morning but later changed to contained at 0.7 hectares. The Irishtown fire near Moncton, which covered 45 hectares, has since been contained.Contained fires have barriers surrounding them, but are still burning on all or some edges, and have the potential to jump the barrier.Miramichi East MLA Michelle Conroy said everybody in the area has been volunteering to help. (Government of New Brunswick )Miramichi East MLA Michelle Conroy said everybody in the area has been volunteering to help in some way, as crew continue to battle the province’s largest wildfire.”Right now, the biggest way to help is just to be there for support and to stay out of the woods and to stay safe, and people are abiding to that,” she said.On Wednesday, Conroy was at the wharf — a place she likes to go whenever she has a few minutes to watch the crews of water bombers. While she was there, she said it briefly started to rain.”It was the most joyous moment of time when we [saw] the sky open up,” said Conroy.”But right after that came a huge lightning storm…. It came in every direction, and we had, I think, 10 new fires as of yesterday afternoon.”Natural Resources Minister John Herron said the lightning strikes contributed to the new fires that popped up, but water bombers were able to snuff many of them out immediately afterwards.”We really consider we have … at most 15 minutes to get at a spark before it potentially comes to something,” said Herron.Natural Resources Minister John Herron said lightning strikes contributed to the new fires that popped up, but water bombers were able to snuff many of them out immediately afterwards. (CBC)The fire near the former Heath Steel Mine concerns officials, said Herron, due to the difficult terrain in the area. He said there’s a plane in the air Thursday morning to observe the fire from an aerial perspective and provide information to the water bombers.Herron said there is a request in for an additional “super scooper” water bomber, which can reload on the fly.Chance of showers for ThursdayThere’s no longer an Environment Canada heat warning in effect Thursday, but the province has been seeing temperatures in the low to high 30s for the last several days, with humidex values in the 40s.According to CBC meteorologist Tina Simpkin, New Brunswick has a chance of showers Thursday with a risk of thunderstorms. Temperatures could range from 21 C along the coast to 29 C inland.The Acadian Peninsula, the Miramichi area and Moncton area all have special weather statements in effect for air quality. In a news release sent Thursday morning, Vitalité Health Network said people 65 or older, pregnant people, infants and young children, people with existing health conditions and people who work outdoors are all more likely to be affected by wildfire smoke.The network advised those people to avoid strenuous outdoor activities and get medical help if they experience any symptoms.Vitalité said the milder symptoms include eye, nose and throat irritation, a headache or mild cough, while more serious symptoms include wheezing, chest pains or a severe cough. Wearing a respirator, such as a properly fitted and certified N95, can reduce someone’s exposure to fine particles in the smoke, the network said.Miramichi breaks temperature record from 1876New Brunswick communities have been setting maximum daily temperature records throughout the week, and Wednesday was no exception.The Bathurst, Doaktown, Edmundston, Fundy and Miramichi areas all set maximum daily temperatures on Wednesday, according to Environment Canada.Miramichi hit 36.3 C, surpassing the record of 34.4 that has been held since 1876.ABOUT THE AUTHORHannah Rudderham is a reporter with CBC New Brunswick. She grew up in Cape Breton, N.S., and moved to Fredericton in 2018. You can send story tips to hannah.rudderham@cbc.ca.With files from Information Morning in the Summer
N.B. wildfires continue to burn out of control, including weeklong Miramichi-area fire
