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Forest Fire

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Two New Fires In Northwestern Ontario

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The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry are confirming 2 new fires in the region.

Sioux Lookout Fire 44 is not under control at 0.3 hectares and is located near Lynxpaw Lake which is around 84 kilometres northeast of Sioux Lookout.

Nipigon Fire 40 is being observed at 1.3 hectares and is about 120 kilometres west of Geraldton.

The Ministry says there are currently 5 active forest fires in the region, one is not under control, one is under control and three are being observed.

The forest fire hazard is mainly high to extreme across the region.

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Update: Highway 17 Closed East Of Ignace

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A section of the Trans Canada Highway between Shabaqua Corners and Raith remains closed.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry is battling a large forest fire.

It’s listed as not under control and is 50 hectares in size.

Highway 17 is closed from the Highway 599 junction in Ignace, all the way to the Highway 11/17 junction at Shabaqua Corners.

Highway 11 is now open to traffic and is available as a detour.

There is no indication of how long the closure on Highway 17 may last.

(Photo Credit: Kimberly-Ann Graver via Facebook)

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Fewer Forest Fires, But More Damage

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The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry is reporting a fewer number of forest fires this season.

Information Officer Chris Marchand says there have been 529 fires provincially, with about 300 of them in the northwest.

Marchand says “those numbers amount to less than about half of last years fire count. With that said it was still a fairly busy year in many respects. Here in the northwest we had a handful of very large, aggressive fires.”

Marchand points out those blazes put communities at risk in the Red Lake and Sioux Lookout districts, forcing some evacuations.

He adds wildland fires actually affected a little more of the land base than they did in the previous year.

Marchand notes the forest fire season ends at the end of October, so there’s still a chance of more sparking.

There are currently 10 active fires in the region.

All of them are being observed.

The hazard is low across the northwest region right now, with no new starts on the weekend.

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Another Crop Of Forest Fires Spark

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The forest fire hazard continues to climb across northwestern Ontario.

It’s predominantly high with areas of moderate scattered throughout the region.

There are currently 35 active fires, five are not under control, two are being held, five are under control and 23 are being observed.

There were seven new starts on Monday.

Two were in the Dryden district.

Both are considered as not under control but are 0.1 hectare in size.

One is 28-kilometres southeast of Dryden near Dinorwic Lake, while the other is about 25-kilometres west of Ignace.

There is also a 0.1 hectare blaze near Scaler Lake, about 34-kilometres northeast of Sioux Lookout.

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Three New Fires Confirmed In The Northwest

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The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry have confirmed three new fires in the Northwest Region.

One of those fires, Nipigon 16, is already declared out at 0.1 hectares.

Kenora fire 48 is not under control at 0.1 hectares and is located on an island on Umfreville Lake which is about 71 kilometers northwest of Kenora.

Red Lake fire 71 is also not under control at 0.5 hectares and is located near Sydney Lake which is about 55 kilometers southwest of Red Lake.

There are currently 37 active fires in the region and the forest fire hazard is low to moderate in the northern portions of the region and high in the southern portions.

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Two New Fires In Red Lake Region

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There were two new forest fires confirmed in the northwest region by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry yesterday afternoon.

Red Lake Fire 57 is being observed at 30 hectares in Opasquia Provincial Park and is about 268 kilometres northeast of Red Lake.

Red Lake Fire 58 is also being observed at 60 hectares and is near Tullibee Lake which is about 269 kilometres north of Red Lake.

There are 27 active fires in the region, four are not under control, one is being held, four are under control and 18 fires are being observed.

The fire hazard is predominantly low to moderate in the northwest region with an area of high hazard in the central portion of the region.

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Pikangikum Evacuation And Fire Update

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The City of Thunder Bay has stopped taking in fire evacuees for the time being.

City Manager Norm Gale says as it stands now, they have around 1,000 Pikangikum residents staying in the city right now.

Gale says “that is the greatest number, only rivaled one time, in the past. We are one of a handful of communities that are accepting evacuees now. We are beyond the level that we can provide for safety, security and happiness for people here under duress.”

The Peel Region and the City of London have also agreed to accept evacuees.

Saskatchewan has stepped forward and is now accepting evacuees from the remote First Nation.

As many as 2,000 are being brought to Regina, Saskatoon and Prince Albert.

Flights out of the community resumed late Thursday after being grounded by smoke.

The forest fire burning just west of Pikangikum now stands at 50,755.76 hectares in size.