Wild Fires in Northwestern Ontario Hazard To Rise

THUNDER BAY -There were no new fires in the Northwest Region on August 13. With clearing weather, the fire hazard is expected to rise to high in the north and northwest sectors by August 14 and be moderate across the remainder of the region. There are 17 active fires in the region including one in the Kenora District, seven in the Nipigon District, one in the Red Lake District and eight in the Sioux Lookout District. They have burned over a combined area of 31,375.6 hectares.

Western Canada Wild Fires

Wildfires continue to be a problem in Canada. Currently in the central region, including the Northern Territories, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, numerous fires were spotted by the Aqua satellite on this image captured on Aug. 12, 2013.

In the past week, 508 new fires started in Canada, burning over half a million acres (208,308 ha). Most of the past week’s fires occurred from Manitoba westward, particularly in British Columbia, while Saskatchewan accounted for roughly half of the area burned. Seasonal fire occurrence remains below average, but the area burned to date is nearly double the 10-year average.

Fire danger is high to extreme in much of British Columbia and the Northwest Territories. In the Northwest Territories, indexes have risen from last week after several hot and dry days. Elevated levels are also found in Nova Scotia, northern Alberta and Saskatchewan, while remaining regions have low fire danger. In Alberta, the region of highest fire danger has moved from the south last week to the north this week.