Residents in the Fredericton area are being asked to stay inside and close their windows as smoke from a trio of fires at Base Gagetown drifts into the area.

Smoke from the fire prompted Environment Canada to issue a special air quality statement Monday morning for Fredericton and Southern York County, Oromocto and Sunbury County, and Grand Lake and Queens County.

The statement said smoke is causing poor air quality and reducing visibility in the area.

"Winds are expected to increase and shift to the southwest this afternoon which should improve conditions," the statement reads.

Environment Canada says individuals may experience increased coughing, throat irritation, headaches or shortness of breath, adding that children, seniors and those with cardiovascular or lung disease are especially at risk.

The Department of Health says minor smoke conditions "do not typically cause health concerns in most healthy individuals," but more severe smoke conditions can cause people to experience eye and throat irritation, and possibly shortness of breath.

The Fredericton Fire Department is asking residents to keep their windows closed, turn off their air exchangers and stay indoors if possible.

Fires grow in size

Stéphanie Duchesne, the base's public affairs officer, told our newsroom Monday morning that a shift in wind direction caused the smoke to blow towards the capital region.

Duchesne said two of the fires are about 500 hectares each, while a third smaller fire is approximately 26 hectares.

"[They are] still contained within the range and training area, no risk of those fires exiting the training area at this point, but smoke is definitely a big concern," she said.

"The smoke, we know, is a big impact, especially on folks with pulmonary disease or the elderly."

Water bombers called in

Duchesne said two water bombers from Québec were called in Sunday to help tackle the fires — which grew in size over the weekend — and will be back in the air on Monday.

Ground crews are also building fire breaks to contain the blazes and attacking the flames from the outside, she said.

"Because of where they are in these impact areas, where there's unexploded ordinances, we can't physically go in there and tackle them from up close, so we need to stay on the periphery and kind of keep them contained," said Duchesne.

The fires were caused by training exercises and have been burning for several weeks, she said, but dry conditions late last week caused "a big flare up."

Duchesne said it's very common for the base to experience these types of fires, but this year has been particularly dry.

"We've had some training restrictions to minimize the fire risk," she said, noting that procedures are in place in the event of a fire.

