Sparks set off 12-acre bush blaze in Belmont

It only took a small spark from a mechanical metal cutter Wednesday afternoon, May 14, to unleash a fire that burned more than 12 acres of land. The grass fire, which originated in a field belonging to Brian Benedict of Belmont, quickly took on a life of its own and spread to the adjacent wood lot. At the end of the day, it took the work of nine fire departments and Natural Resources teams to finally extinguish the flames.

The Brooklyn Volunteer Fire Department received the call at just past noon May 14, and it did not take long for members to establish how quickly the fire could get out of hand. “The biggest hindrance for us was the wind,” said BFD Captain Mike Maynard. He noted that when firefighters arrived at the scene, the fire had already moved into the wooded area, but was not encroaching on any homes.

Mutual aid arrived from the Windsor, Summerville, Hantsport, New Minas, Kentville, Wolfville, Greenwich, Vaughns and some South Shore fire departments.

Maynard said in that particular situation what they needed most was “water and bodies.” He noted, “we needed all the tankers we could get and the more bodies there the easier it was to contain the fire.” Natural Resources helicopters were also used to help douse the fire. Maynard said that according to the Department of Natural Resources it was a spark from a grinder or cutter, which ignited the grass. “When the fire index is high like it is right now anything poses a fire risk.”