'Tremendous' effort keeps wildfire south of Churchill River, says N.L. ...

Fire suppression activities efforts Thursday have kept the wildfire near Churchill Falls to the south banks of the river for the time being, says Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro.

"As a result of this tremendous suppression effort, the fire has not crossed the river and there is no advancement towards the community," according to a statement posted by the provincial Crown corporation on its website at 10:40 p.m. Thursday.

On Wednesday night, forestry officials ordered the hasty evacuation of Churchill Falls, a company town that exists to keep Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro's generating station running. The massive hydroelectric plant provides power to the province and about 15 per cent of neighbouring Quebec's power.

Dozens of people stayed behind in the community following the evacuation order to keep the plant operational. So far the fire hasn't reached the community.

There are two major fires west of Churchill Falls, with the nearer one putting Churchill Falls at peril, separated from the town only by the Churchill River.

In an earlier interview with CBC News, provincial forest fire duty officer Bryan Oke said he hopes the geography — such as the barrier the river provides — will help firefighters with their efforts.

Forestry officials have also brought in sprinklers to help suppress fire around the town's facilities and protect property, the N.L. Hydro statement added.

At the moment, there is a crew of about 40 are in the community, to keep the power station operational, as well as police officers and firefighters.

The statement added there is no immediate risk to the plant but the situation is being assessed.

"There are many considerations in determining an approach to production should teams receive direction to evacuate, including spilling requirement and downstream impacts, asset protection, and remote monitoring capabilities."

According to the province's online wildfire dashboard, there are now 11 active fires burning in the province, up four from Thursday.

There are three new fires in Labrador — at Atikonak Lake, Joseph Lake and Milner Lake West No. 2, all listed as burning out of control

In addition, a new fire on Newfoundland's west coast, at South Branch, is listed as being held.

Forest fire duty officer Mark Lawlor says the source of the fire is under investigation.

He said the new fires have put a strain on available resources to fight fires, which is why the province imposed a fire ban on much of the province.

Lawlor said the fire threatening Churchill Falls is seven kilometres southwest of the community. There are smoking hot spots, open flames and burning trees, he said, but four water bombers have been able to keep the fire to the south side of the river.

"All in all, it was a success there," Lawlor said.

There's another fire 17 kilometres away from the community, along the Trans-Labrador Highway, he said. One of their main objectives is to keep that fire contained south of the river of the community and keep the highway open.

Weather forecasts that could favour the fire spreading is keeping them in a "heightened sense of awareness," Lawlor said, which is why they are concentrating their water bombers on the fires' eastern flank.

About 1,500 hectares are now burning, more than double the total size Thursday. Lawlor blamed weather conditions, including high wind gusts and relative humidity dropping less than forecast.

"It was a perfect storm that day," he said.

On Thursday, Premier Andrew Furey announced a provincial fire ban for all of Newfoundland and parts of Labrador.

"The bulk of our assets are deployed in Labrador right now, and as a result we want to make sure we don't have subsequent, other threats that could dilute efforts in fighting the fire in Churchill Falls," he told reporters.

At the same press conference, Forestry Minister Elvis Loveless said he believed the fire ban is an important cautionary measure to help reduce the risk of more fires being started and support firefighter teams that are currently at work.

"I strongly encourage all residents to be extra vigilant when taking part in outdoor activities — as high temperatures as we can see out there today — high temperatures forecasted for the coming days are expected to keep the fire hazard risk at elevated levels."

The province has asked for additional support to fight the fires, including two water bombers from Quebec that arrived Thursday evening.

Lawlor said an additional two water bombers from Ontario are arriving Friday, raising the total number of water bombers available to fight the fires to eight.

"I think we're in good shape with resources right now, much better shape than we were yesterday," he said.

While hundreds of people headed east toward Happy Valley-Goose Bay for safety Wednesday, a small number of people went west.

Marlene Thompson, who was in a small group who headed for Labrador West, said she has family in the area and was told it was safe to go in that direction.

"We're still trying to digest it. We don't really know what to expect at this point," she said.

There were police officers checking in on evacuees arriving in Labrador West as well, she said.

"We just pulled up and the cop asked us our name and our date of birth and then they asked if we needed any accommodations or food. I thought it was done rather well and really smooth," said Thompson.

Thompson was at dinner with friends when the news arrived the town was being evacuated, and they started hurrying to finish their meal and pay so they could hurry home and prepare.

"That's when I started throwing things into a suitcase. Just random things here and there," she said.

She isn't sure if her clothes match or are for the summer, she added.

"But I tried my best to take all of our life and throw it in a bag," she said. "It was harder than I thought it would be. But we managed to get it done, packed and on the road in like probably 30 minutes."

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Elizabeth Whitten is a journalist and editor based in St. John's.