Forest Fire Situation Update – Northwest Region June 14, 2019

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The Forest Fire Hazard heading into the weekend is high in Northern Ontario

THUNDER BAY –  There was one new fire in the Northwest Region by the late afternoon of June 14.

  • Red Lake 22 is located approximately 29 kilometres west of Poplar Hill First Nation. The three-hectare fire is not under control.

At the time of this update there were six active fires in the region – two of which were not under control, two were being held, one was under control and one was being observed.

Sioux Lookout 8 near Pickle Lake

Sioux Lookout 8 near Pickle Lake is being held at 824 hectares. Nine crews continue to take advantage of low fire behaviour to track down hotspots following an early morning infra-red scan of the fire.

Red Lake 14 near Pikangikum and Red Lake 17

Red 14 near Pikangikum is being held at 3,835 hectares. A total of 10 crews remain on the fire, identifying and extinguishing hot spots with hand tools. Red 17 northeast of Trout Lake is not under control at 6,847 hectares. A total of 23 crews are making progress consolidating hose lines on both divisions of the fire.

Fire hazard for the Northwest Region

The forest fire hazard ranges from high to extreme in the Red Lake sector and low to moderate throughout the remainder of the Northwest Region.

Help prevent forest fires

Adopt safe campfire practices!  Choose the site of your campfire carefully and keep your fire small.  Stay nearby: never leave it unattended.  Put your fire out by drowning it with water.  Be sure that it is extinguished prior to leaving the site.  Stir the ashes with a stick to uncover hot coals and then drown it again.  You can never be too safe.

Consider alternatives to burning brush or yard waste, such as chipping or composting when possible, or saving burn piles for the fall or after the fire season. Use of outdoor fires must follow the outdoor burning rules set out in the Forest Fire Prevention Act of Ontario. Fires are to be started no sooner than two hours before sunset and extinguished no later than two hours after sunrise. Fires should never be left unattended and tools and water should be close at hand to put the fire out. More details on outdoor burning regulations can be found online at Ontario.ca/forestfire To see a complete list of fires across the province click on our interactive map. You can also get the latest update on the condition of any fire by clicking the fire icon.

Fire numbers and online information:

Report prepared by Chris Marchand

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