Source: West Dalhousie Wildfire: Fighting Fire, Saving Forests, Rebuilding Futures
15 minutes YouTube Video in Forest NS “Forestry Uncut” Podcast series, posted Feb 6, 2026.
Host: Todd Burgess: Forest Nova Scotia Executive Director
Guests: Kaitlyn Enders: Regional Forester and heavy equipment coordinator
& Stephen Freeman: A sixth-generation sawmiller.
“When an out-of-control wildfire tore through more than 8,400 hectares in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis County, it wasn’t just a story on the news — it was in the backyards of forest workers, landowners, and entire communities. In this episode of Forestry Uncut, host Todd Burgess, Executive Director of Forest Nova Scotia, takes you inside the West Dalhousie (Long Lake) wildfire response and its aftermath. You’ll hear from: Kaitlyn Enders, Regional Forester and heavy equipment coordinator, who managed 37+ pieces of gear and multiple dozer groups on the fire line, coordinating contractors, divisions, and specialized machinery to build fire guards and support crews. Stephen Freeman, a sixth-generation sawmiller from the Freeman family on the Medway River, who shares how industry and community stepped up with equipment, crews, and expertise, and why he calls the contractors’ work “real heroism.”
“We explore: How Nova Scotians rallied, with contractors and community members offering equipment, skills, and time without waiting for a paycheck The critical role of planning, training, and pre-arranged contracts for large-scale wildfire response Why removing ladder fuels and leftover forest debris is essential to reducing future fire risk What happens after the flames are out: Salvage harvesting and how mill AI can distinguish rot vs. burn The short window to recover burnt wood before it loses value Replanting and creating new, sustainably managed forests How salvaging and replanting can bring both closure to affected landowners and hope for the next generation of forests The West Dalhousie fire left a blackened landscape, but also a chance for recovery, renewal, and smarter preparedness. As Stephen notes, the true tragedy would be letting this forest resource go to waste instead of using it to build a healthier, more resilient forest for the future. If you’d like to learn more about Forest Nova Scotia and t the work happening across the province, visit forestns.ca to explore resources, episodes, and stories from the forest sector.”
Rough Transcript from “8: 25 min Looking ahead: what future fires will demand” to end. (View YouTube description for a guide to sections of the video with subtitles.)
TB: Now that we’ve walked through the fire itself, and the incredible community response it’s time to take a step back and look at the bigger picture.
What can we learn from the West Dalhousie fire and what lessons are we taking forward to prevent, prepare for and respond to future fires more effectively?
What do you feel like you learn on your row with this wildfire for the future?
‘Cause we’re going to get more, we’re going to get other wildfires especially in I think we’re probably ripe for one in northern Nova Scotia Fiona going through?
So what have you learned what what do we need to do different what do we have to prepare for fire?
KE: I think that Every fire provides a different experience and like you said, you know how to happened in the more eastern part of the province where Fiona struck and you have all those ladder fuels and everything, that that was l a huge concern this fire season. But all we can do is continue to try to remove those kind of fuels that are left in the woods.
… a lot of planning needs to happen and so we know we need more training within the department to kind of prepare people for these large scale events.
We are really good at putting out fires at small scales, so much to the point where let the general public doesn’t always hear about them because we’ve rapidly responded we’ve put it out, it doesn’t really become anything of it because it was such a rapid response.
But when these large scale fires happen and we are doing the best or ability to coordinate and bring everything together, it does take several days to kind of get your head wrapped around things; that you get a handle on the situation that is ever changing every day but the weather brings something different …all I can say is just more planning more
things in in place, like you know for these contractors that came and just like a call to duty.
Alright, we need to have rates in place beforehand, we need to have contracts that are designed so when they call upon these people and they ask for help that here are these documentations, all this this information is known ahead of time and I think that’s our biggest [challenge].
TB: After a fire the work doesn’t stop when the flames go out one of the biggest questions is what happens to all that burnt wood?
Can it be salvaged, can we replant and restore the forest to a productive healthy state?
8400 hectors…how big is that , 18,000 acres…’just trying to put it into perspective for some of our listeners.
What about all that wood that’s there, is there any burnt wood that you’ll be able to use or what can we do with that, what about replanting, you know about any plans to get it back to a productive forest again?
SF: So there’s options. When fire ripped through Tantallon, we did a bunch of salvage harvests and with the artificial intelligence we have in the mill we can tell the difference between rot and burn, for instance, so we have the ability to process that wood.
And I think the fire itself was a tragedy, I think the biggest tragedy would be if there was if that forest resource went to waste.
And there was an opportunity to create a New Forest .
I think, in my personal opinion, there’s going to be an opportunity to harvest some of that wood, the window is short, you have about a year before it becomes valueless, and it starts to blow over
And I want to see New Forest there I want to see it sustainably managed.
You have a bunch of different land owners there; we lost two very nice with lots, Freeman Lumber last two very nice wood lots.. we lost our own woodlots ,and there’s a lot of different land owners there with a lot of different objectives, but it would be a tragedy if that wood didn’t get cleaned up and used in my personal opinion.
And I think it’s it’s an opportunity to provide some closure and help the folks that had to experience that in their own backyard move on as well.
I know we did work in Tantallon area after the fire, people were just so grateful to have that black mess cleaned up and see a New Forest we planted , and I think I’m hoping that we see a lot of that in the wake of this fire.
And I hope a lot of this wood is salvagable wood because if it lays down and dies it’s just going to create more fire load and it’s going to stop a New Forest from growing.
Like I said [I am] not a forester but I know a lot of foresters and we’re all saying they’re all saying the same thing.
TB: The West Dalhousie fire may have left a blackened landscape but it also opened a window for action, recovery and renewal from salvage harvesting to replanting there’s a chance to create new forests support land owners and reduce future fire risk.
As Steven said, the biggest tragedy would be letting the resource go to waste.
But by acting quickly and thoughtfully we can ensure these forests continue to provide for the people in the community who depend on them
It’s a reminder that even in the aftermath of fire there’s hope pride and the path forward.