Crews arrived quickly but were forced to spend their time chasing various hotspots of a fire along the Nanaimo Parkway Monday morning. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

TINDER DRY

VIDEO: Fast moving fire chars brush along Nanaimo Parkway

Aug 14, 2023 | 12:58 PM

NANAIMO — A quick call to 911 and rapid response from Nanaimo Fire Rescue (NFR) crews prevented a grass fire from spreading too far.

A cyclist travelling underneath the Nanaimo Parkway between Mostar Rd. and Northfield Rd. called 911 on Monday, Aug 14 just after 12 p.m. to report a fast-moving fire running along the fence line of the Nanaimo Parkway’s eastern side off the end of Crystal Block Way.

Stefan Bjarnason told NanaimoNewsNOW on scene he was riding through the tunnel under the highway south of the Mostar Rd. exit when he smelled smoke.

Once he arrived on the other side of the tunnel, more smoke and flames were visible.

“The fire was moving down very steep slope just to the right of the tunnel then it began to spread across the left side just behind the fence that separates brush from the freeway. It was really moving fast.”

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Firefighters responded within four minutes, Bjarnason said.

He was taken aback by how fast the fire moved, fueled by tinder dry conditions and gusty, swirling winds.

“When I first got here it was just above the tunnel then within a few minutes it was spreading first to the north then to the south and moving pretty quickly. The fire guys were surprised too…it was because of the wind, it was really moving along.”

Even with the quick response, flames still popped up in multiple locations as embers were fanned around.

Crews remained busy dousing any flare ups well after having the initial spot fully under control.

Roughly 200 feet of brush was scorched along the fence-line adjacent to the Parkway Trail.

NFR also staged on the Parkway itself, with traffic reduced to single-lane for northbound travellers throughout the incident.

A cause of the fire is not immediately known.

NFR Capt. Dan Kershaw said on scene they initially responded to the Parkway but were unable to connect to a hydrant. A second engine was called to access infrastructure in the neighbouring residential area.

He added wind played a major role in the fire’s rapid spread.

“The potential [for danger] is high with the wind, like all fires though we want to have a quick response time and mitigate the damage,” Kershaw said.

He also said people driving along the roadway should not discard cigarette butts, and reiterated the current total fire ban in place.

It was the second bush fire responded to by NFR crews Monday, with a sizeable chunk of private land along the waterfront burnt after a vehicle caught fire.

Traffic along the Nanaimo Parkway was restricted for just under an hour on Monday afternoon, as crews worked along the fence line. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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