HALIFAX — A small wildfire burning out of control on the western outskirts of Halifax was caused by human activity, Nova Scotia's manager of forest protection said Wednesday.
Scott Tingley with the provincial Natural Resources Department told reporters that an open fire pit was found at the scene of the fire near Susies Lake, which is about 10 kilometres west of downtown Halifax.
"There was nobody in the area when crews arrived on the scene, that makes it impossible to hold the person or people responsible to account," Tingley said at a news briefing. "That's frustrating to everyone."
Open fires are banned across Nova Scotia and violations comes with a $25,000 fine. The province has also banned hiking, fishing and using vehicles in the woods, as well as any camping outside of designated camp sites. Anyone caught breaking the rules will face the same $25,000 punishment.
Twelve people have been fined since last week, Premier Tim Houston told reporters.
"It's certainly my hope that every single one of those is fully prosecuted and collected. It's just too serious of a situation right now," Houston said.
The Susies Lake fire erupted on Tuesday afternoon close to businesses and homes in the Bayers Lake area. The fire prompted the evacuation of three businesses in the Bayers Lake business park on Wednesday morning. It also forced a hardware store and restaurant to close the day before. An outpatient clinic in the Susies Lake area also remained closed Wednesday.
The fire measured between 25 and 30 hectares on Wednesday morning, but firefighters managed to beat it back to about 15 hectares by the afternoon, Tingley said.
Officials said there was a brief period of favourable foggy conditions for firefighters to attack the flames but temperatures were expected to climb to 27 C later in the day.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 13, 2025.
Lyndsay Armstrong, The Canadian Press
