Wildland fires force evacuations in northern communities

Northern Ont. wildfires escalate, forcing evacuations. Timmins Fire 1 & Sudbury 8 under control, Sioux Lookout 3 triggers emergency. High fire risk – officials

On Monday, the wildland fire season was just beginning. Now, officials say, “we’re in it.”

The Timmins 1 fire is the first forest fire in the area.

“Located approximately 3.5 kilometres north of Gogama and measuring 17.5 hectares, it was visible from Highway 144,” said Isabelle Chenard, communications and media relations specialist with Aviation, Forest and Emergency Services.

“There are three crews assigned to that fire, and they’re making really good progress with fire suppression. There’s also Sudbury 8, which is located approximately 12 kilometres north of Bueno Barrel and west of Highway 69.”

Chenard said the situation is more serious in northwestern Ontario.

“In the area around Sioux Lookout 3, the Ojibwe Nation of Saugeen has declared a state of emergency due to the fire, and they have self-evacuated,” she said.

“There are also some evacuation alerts underway, and all that information is posted on our social media accounts.”

With the fire danger rating now set to high for the Timmins area, the Timmins Fire Department is warning people – especially campers – that fires can start easily and burn vigorously.

“The status is to be careful,” said Timmins Fire Chief Scott Atkinson.

“We are still issuing fire permits through Service Timmins. We are keeping an eye on the fire rating and the dangers of the fire rating, and if necessary, we will look at putting on a fire ban within the municipality and ceasing all permits.”

Atkinson said he has received several calls about people not following their fire permit rules, which are stated on the permit. He added no fines have been issued yet.