Paul Gray says at first, when he saw something black lying on his grass on Sunday in Nueva Scotia, he didn’t know what it was.
I had already noticed gusts of gray and white forest ashes that fell from the sky, but I was curious about the black object, so I went to take a look.
There, that he tended on the dry straw grass of drought conditions, there was a carbonized arce leaf but otherwise intact.
“When I saw the blade for the first time, my heart sank”, “ Gray said, who lives in South Greenwood, about 26 kilometers when the crow flies from the long fire of the lake in the Annapolis Valley.
The fire, which began on August 13, has destroyed buildings and has forced more than 1,000 people from their homes. Until Wednesday, it had grown to 8,278 hectares, or 82 square kilometers.
New Scotland has been experiencing very dry conditions, which have exacerbated fire risk and caused a prohibition of certain activities in the forest.
Gray said in a Facebook post that the photo is “great”, but also “terrifying and sad.”
“It is that truly Canadian symbol of an arce sheet, that icon that we all use with pride and we are proud to be Canadian,” he said in an interview. “See it in such a state, see it blackened it thus, burned to a clear, I think that is the mobile part, the understanding that we are burning. As a country, we are burning.”
His photo has been shared a few hundred times on Facebook, with people commenting that he is “iconic”, “rise” and “heartbreaking”.
Gray said he was surprised that the sheet travels that distance from the area of forest fires.
On Sunday, the strong winds fueled the flames of the Long Lake Fire, which doubled in size from Sunday to Monday.
“I knew it was a windy day and I knew it was going to be a bad day, but that really made it sink. It is surprising that it can go so far.”
Gray said he just took two fast photos with his phone and continued his day.
“I could have gone and dig my digital slr and get a good photographic lens and have taken an adequate photo, but I didn’t.
While Gray is far enough from the long fire of the lake who does not care about the danger to his home, he said he is generally concerned about forest fires and the impacts on Canadians.
“I have friends, I have coworkers who are evacuated or self -aged in the area. I know people fighting fires. I think we all probably know someone who is affected in some way,” he said.
“It’s not good, it’s not good for anyone. So, you know, a lot of concern, alone, yes, saddened by the fact that we have to go through that.”
