New BrunswickNew Brunswick’s minister of natural resources said Monday that weekend showers and cooler temperatures have been helpful in the province’s fight against several dozen concurrent wildfires, but the province is not out of danger yet.Natural resources minister says Edmundston-area forest could be first to reopenOliver Pearson · CBC News · Posted: Aug 18, 2025 7:55 AM EDT | Last Updated: August 19A photo taken on Aug. 13 shows firefighters working to extinguish the Oldfield Road wildfire in the Miramichi area. New Brunswick will get some help this week, as 40 firefighters arrive from Ontario to battle the blazes. (Government of New Brunswick)New Brunswick’s minister of natural resources said Monday that weekend showers and cooler temperatures have been helpful in the province’s fight against several dozen concurrent wildfires, but the province is not out of danger yet.As 35 wildfires still burn, John Herron suggested some commercial and recreational activities in forests could open up again on a selective basis, depending on the area, and the Edmundston area could be first.In a live update on wildfires, Herron said two to five days of rain similar to what parts of the province saw this weekend would help, and easing restrictions wouldn’t happen overnight.”We have been lucky enough to receive rain over the last few days and finally break from that extreme heat,” Herron said, noting the moisture bought fire crews two to three days before the forest dries out once again.In the hours after Herron spoke, the number of out-of-control fires listed on the province’s wildfire website was reduced.WATCH | Despite some progress, Herron says N.B. wildfire situation remains serious: Wildfires causing millions in economic loss, province saysWhile rainfall and a break in extreme heat has helped New Brunswick firefighting efforts, the forest floor is still too dry to allow commercial and recreational activities to return to normal. Since the fires began, roughly 2,500 hectares of what Herron called merchantable timber in the province has been lost or is at risk, he said.The lost timber results in a $4 million loss in royalty revenue or stumpage to land owners, a $10.5-million loss in direct or indirect tax revenue to the government, a $42.5 million loss in saw mill revenue and roughly $77.5 million in GDP loss.Herron added that those projected numbers are on the “higher end.”Despite the weekend showers, wildfire danger still remains high.”Quick rain showers only dampen the surface, while the dry material underneath can still ignite easily. Sun and wind can dry out that moisture within hours, creating dangerous conditions again,” said an update Monday morning posted to the province’s fire watch website.Herron said the province’s fire centre is looking at longer-term planning on how to get fires under control.Fires could be here for another month”It does kind of hurt my feelings to use the word longer-term planning. It does mean these fires are going to be with us for the month ahead, absent of a torrential downpour throughout all of New Brunswick.” Rain and firefighting efforts have allowed the province to contain its largest wildfire, the Oldfield Road fire in the Miramichi area.The fire was first detected on Aug. 6 and covers just over 1,400 hectares on the northern outskirts of Miramichi and beyond them.”The fire is surrounded by barriers like bulldozer breaks or hose lines,” said an update from the province explaining why the fire is now considered contained.The lines are expected to keep the fire from “spreading further if firefighting efforts continue,” but the fire is “still actively burning on some or all edges, and it could potentially jump or spread.”Four fires were burning out of control in New Brunswick on Monday evening, down from 14 on Sunday.The out-of-control fires include the Beaver Lake Stream fire in Northumberland County, near Kennedy Lakes Protected Nature Area.The province’s wildfire site Monday evening stated that fire had burned 238 hectares, down from 650 hectares earlier in the day. It wasn’t clear why the size of the fire had been revised downards.Herron said Monday morning that 40 highly trained firefighters have arrived from Ontario and are being directed to the Beaver Lake Stream fire which he describes as being “very, very remote.”Several fires are being monitored, which according to the province’s website means they aren’t “immediately threatening life or infrastructure” and are being monitored by aircraft, with no firefighting resources assigned to them.Some residents in the Lavillette area were issued an evacuation advisory that was lifted on Sunday morning.Herron said that there are no active evacuation advisories in the province. He added that the only evacuations have been related to the Oldfield Road fire.The Chief’s fire in Northumberland County is also out of control, at 218 hectares. The Lovalls Lake fire, at 3.7 hectares, is currently burning about 30 kilometres southwest of Bathurst.Two fires around 20 kilometres apart in Restigouche County were considered out of control Monday. Through the day, the Jacquet River fire grew from 70 hectares to 184 hectares.The second, known as the Jacquet River PNA fire, remained at 0.1 hectares but its status changed Monday evening to “being patrolled.” That means it’s contained with almost no fire activity and only occasional smoke with minimal staff required.One fire, called Hells Gate, burned two hectares before it was deemed contained on Monday evening. Earlier while it was still out of control, Herron said that the province was “uncomfortable with its location” near Kouchibouguac National Park.ABOUT THE AUTHOROliver Pearson is a reporter at CBC New Brunswick. He can be reached at oliver.pearson@cbc.ca
Rain could allow N.B. to reopen forests, 4 fires still out of control
