THUNDER BAY – WEATHER – At the time of this report, no new fires have been confirmed in the Northwest region. There are two fires currently active, one of which is being observed in the Red Lake District. The remaining fire is the new start from Friday July 25 in Nipigon that is currently being suppressed and is under control.
The degree of concern for fire behaviour is low in the south and moderate to high in the north.
There are 594 personnel from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry on assignment in Alberta (107), British Columbia (349), Parks Canada – Alberta (13) and the Northwest Territories (125) to assist in forest fire management efforts. An Incident Management Team is scheduled to return to Ontario on the weekend at the completion of their 14-day deployment.
These personnel are from Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services bases across the province and are FireRanger crews, Incident Management Team (IMT) members as well as specialists in areas such as fire behaviour analysis, liaison and helicopter coordination.
In addition to the personnel on fire assignment, Ontario is providing equipment including 400 power pumps, two thousand lengths of hose and two values protection units to British Columbia. Crews are working long hours and will be returning home after fourteen to nineteen days on deployment. There is a demobilization scheduled for later today, including 24 overhead staff and 35 FireRangers returning from British Columbia, as well as one overhead staff and 12 FireRangers returning from Alberta.
Saturday July 26 saw cloudy skies with showers and a risk of thunderstorms, especially in southern districts. For Sunday June 27 cloud cover will move out of the Northwest region with light winds and temperatures in the low 20s.
Report forest fires in the Northwest Region and the Northeast Region (for areas north of the French and Mattawa Rivers) by dialing 310-FIRE (3473). Southern region forest fires can be reported by calling the local fire department.
