Eyewitness accounts: A glimpse inside N.S. fire damaged neighbourhoods
A burnt metal frame of a trampoline offers a tiny trace of the young family who until Sunday, lived on Jenna Lane.
The Osbornes left in a hurry, like their neighbours, as a wildfire raged and embers jumped, sparking homes and trees on fire.
A burnt metal frame of a trampoline on Jenna Lane in Hammonds Plains, N.S. (Sarah Plowman/ CTV Atlantic)
That was Sunday evening. By Tuesday morning Danny Osborne had already seen the video of his home on social media. He knew it was destroyed.
When RCMP escorted Osborne and his neighbour Dan Cavanaugh into their Yankeetown subdivision to search for a cat, the 45-year-old couldn’t have imagined what it would be like to stand in front of his home that’s no longer standing.
“It’s a pretty gut-wrenching feeling. Walking around the turn to see your place no longer there,” Osborne said.
On Jenna Lane, a small street that shoots off of Yankeetown Road, Osborne said there’s usually eight homes. On Tuesday he only saw two houses and a garage.
“And the rest of them are all flattened,” Osborne said.
Dan Cavanaugh, Osborne’s neighbour and friend, had heard rumours his house along Yankeetown Road was destroyed. He was in the truck with Osborne as they went to look for a cat.
When they first pulled onto Yankeetown, the damage didn’t look so bad.
“And we got to our friends’ place, saw her house was completely gone, her neighbour to the left was completely gone,” Cavanaugh said. “Half of our road is gone. There’s no houses left on half of Yankeetown road.”
Cavanaugh’s house was spared.
“I’m elated at the same time I’m heartbroken for our other friends,” he said.
Remains from the Tantallon-area fire taken on May 30, 2023. (Sarah Plowman/ CTV Atlantic)
Maureen and Lorne Smith were also in line for a police escort to get their pets.
Although the videos they had seen online showed their house was standing, they also worried what they might find.
“It looks like a warzone,” Lorne Smith said.
“It's hard to imagine everything black and down. That’s just depressing to me to think,” said Maureen.
When the Smiths picked up their cat, they found their house was okay. The couple attributes this to the nearby pond but added other homeowners nearby were not as lucky.
Along their route, Lorne Smith counted about a dozen homes destroyed and many are on Yankeetown Road.
“The daycare is gone. The custom woodshop is gone,” he said.
Those who’ve been inside and have seen the damage describe the path of the fire as if it danced or jumped around.
“There’s spots that’s completely green. And then there’s spots right next to it that are burnt,” Lorne said.
When Danny Osborne left Sunday, he took his trailer with him. It was a decision he learned paid off when he lived through the Fort McMurray wildfires in 2016.
“We lucked out in Fort McMurray because we were actually able to come back to our home, which was still standing there. Here, not so lucky. You’re not gonna get that lucky twice maybe I guess,” he said.
For now, Osborne will live with his family in his trailer in his friend’s yard in Lower Sackville. He’ll soon move his family to a campground.
For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air turbulence: When can it become dangerous?
Flight turbulence like that encountered by a Singapore Airlines flight on Tuesday is extremely common, but there's one aspect of severe turbulence an aviation expert says can lead to serious injury.
B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton hospitalized after prison attack
British Columbia serial killer Robert Pickton was attacked and sustained life-threatening injuries in a Quebec prison Sunday in what officials described as a 'major assault.'
opinion Tom Mulcair: With Trudeau spiralling, Mark Carney waits in the wings
In his latest column for CTVNews.ca, former NDP leader Tom Mulcair argues that if there's an unofficial frontrunner in the eventual race to replace Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader, it has to be former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney.
Toronto Blue Jays fan struck by 110 m.p.h foul ball offered tickets, signed baseball by team
The Toronto Blue Jays have offered tickets and a signed baseball to a fan who says she was struck in the face by a 110 m.p.h (177 km/h) foul ball at Friday’s game.
Orphan orca's extended family spotted off northeast side of Vancouver Island
Members of a killer whale pod related to an orphan orca calf that escaped a remote British Columbia tidal lagoon last month have been spotted off the northeast coast of Vancouver Island.
OPP continues to investigate boat collision north of Kingston, Ont. that left 3 people dead
Ontario Provincial Police continue to investigate a long weekend fatal boat collision on Bobs Lake, north of Kingston, Ont.
Matthew Perry's death is being investigated over ketamine level found in actor's blood, reports say
An investigation has been opened into the death of Matthew Perry and how the “Friends” actor received the anesthetic ketamine, which was ruled a contributing factor in his death.
'Miscommunication' Liberals say of Speaker Fergus event invite Conservatives call partisan
House of Commons Speaker Greg Fergus is facing fresh Conservative-led calls to resign, this time over "very partisan" and 'inflammatory' language used – the Liberals say mistakenly – to promote an upcoming event.
'Mr. Trump doesn't worry us', says Canadian ambassador
As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau continues the 'Team Canada' charm offensive to U.S. lawmakers and business leaders, Canada's ambassador to the United States downplayed the effect of another Trump presidency on Canada.