NORTH BAY – WILDFIRE UPDATE – By the evening of July 13, there are 52 active forest fires in the Northeast region. Of these, 21 are not yet under control, while 31 are either being held, under control or being observed. Fourteen fires have been called out.
Tomorrow, the forecast is calling for some wrap around cloud in areas near the Quebec border which would continue to provide cloud cover for the Temagami, Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park and River Valley fire clusters. The winds will be light and variable which will have minimal impact on fire activity. Although we did record rainfall today in some areas of the Northeast, it was scattered in nature and will provide modest relief over the next day or two for fires in the areas of concern.
- Two new fires were reported today. North Bay 93 and Sault Ste. Marie 11 are both 0.1 hectares and have both been actioned by FireRanger crews. Cloud cover and scattered showers assisted fire personnel in making good progress on current fires.
- North Bay 72 originated in Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park and has exited the park boundary towards the northeast. This is currently the largest fire burning in the Northeast region at 10 775 hectares (this fire was remapped for a more accurate size). New crews arrived to the base camp today. Values protection is established in Speight Township as a precautionary measure.
- Timmins 12, which is located approximately 25 km east of Nighthawk Lake, is 77.3 hectares. Today, heavy equipment made good progress while a belly-tanker helicopter assisted 6 crews on the ground.
- The weather assisted Fire crews in making good progress on North Bay 69 today, which is located southwest of the Temagami marina.
- Fire crews are being established on North Bay 62, a 2500 hectare fire northeast of River Valley.
- North Bay 55 is located south of Temagami, east of Hwy 11 and covers 25 hectares. Fire crews made good progress on the fire today.
Incident Management Teams
Incident Management Teams (IMTs) have mobilized in the region and are taking over priority fires in 3 areas:
- River Valley Cluster
- Lake Temagami Cluster
- Lady Evelyn Cluster
Resources from Out of Province
The following forest firefighting crews are currently assisting Ontario FireRangers and type 2 contract crews:
- Nova Scotia has supplied five 4 person crews with 2 support staff
- Prince Edward Island has supplied a 4 person crew
- Newfoundland has supplied a 4 person crew
- British-Columbia has supplied twenty 3 person crews with 2 support staff
- Northwest Territories has supplied six 4 person crews with 1 support staff
- Saskatchewan has supplied two support staff
- Alberta has supplied fifteen 4 person crews, 9 support staff, and a 19 person Incident Management Team
- Minnesota has supplied 2 support staff
The following equipment is in Ontario, helping with the forest fire situation:
- Alberta and Saskatchewan are currently supporting Ontario’s fire suppression operations with Air tanker packages.
SMOKE CONCERNS
- Many Ontario residents have been reporting smoke drift in their communities, smoky conditions are expected to continue until weather patterns change.
- AFFES is reminding the public that if they do see flames or smoke, please report it, and stay away from the area in the interest of public safety.
- If you have questions or concerns about smoke and your health, please contact Tele Health Ontario at 1-866-797-0000.
Temagami area information
The MNRF has been advised by the Municipality of Temagami that the Mandatory Evacuation Orders from Temagami Shores, at the south edge of the town of Temagami, to Jessie Lake including Bell Island on Lake Temagami have been downgraded to an Evacuation Alert. Residents may return home, however, must remain on alert as they can be asked to leave again at any time based on the fire situation. Other Evacuation Alerts remain in place.
Travel Restrictions
MNRF issued an Emergency Area Order (EAO) for parts of the North Bay District due to active fires around Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater, Lake Temagami and the North Bay District.
The restrictions include:
- Please visit Ontario.ca/forestfire as this information is being updated regularly.
- For information about these travel restrictions: 705-475-5546
- For media inquiries contact: 705-564-6146
- For inquiries by members of the public contact: 705-564-6165
- For inquiries on highway closures: Call 5-1-1
FIRE NUMBERS AND ONLINE INFORMATION:
- To report a forest fire located north of the French and Mattawa rivers, please dial 310-FIRE (3473)
- To report a forest fire located south of the French or Mattawa rivers, please dial 911.
- Follow us on Twitter: in English @ONForestFires or in French @ONFeuDeForêt
- For up to date information on current fires in the province or to check the forest fire hazard in your area, visit Ontario.ca/forestfire
For guidelines on safe outdoor fire management ontario.ca/fireprevention
