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Firefighters enjoying lousy weather

A fire in April 2010 in the community of Chapel's Cove,west of St. John's.

Firefighters aren't complaining about the cold, wet weather that has stuck over much of Newfoundland this year.

Instead, they believe it has helped keep the number of forest fires in the province low this year.

As of Aug. 11, Newfoundland and Labrador firefighters were called to 42 fires in 2011, compared to a 10-year average of 110 fires for the same period each year.

"From a fire perspective, it's certainly good news to us," said Eric Earle, the province's supervisor of forest fire management.

"That's a benefit of the wet weather …although maybe not everybody else would agree with that."

Earle said a number of the province's water bombers that aren't being used in Newfoundland and Labrador have been loaned out to Ontario where many fires are burning this summer.

Firefighters who might have been battling fires here have turned to other conservation work, such as planting trees and building woods roads, he said.