East & West Fire Region Situation Updates
West Fire Region
Thursday, August 05, 2010
There was one new fire reported in the West Fire Region by the evening of August 05. Kenora District Fire Number 37 was a lightning-caused fire. Found smouldering on an island southeast of Kenora, the 0.1 hectare fire received a response from the Sioux Narrows Fire Department. It was declared out the same day.
Northern fires being observed remain quiet. An aerial reconnaissance over the fires on August 05 found no visible smoke.
Ontario is currently providing resources out of province in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. On August 05, an additional 107 Ontario fire personnel joined Ontario staff already in British Columbia bringing the total number of Ontario resources in the three provinces to 330 personnel.
This includes 268 in British Columbia, 20 in Manitoba and 42 in Saskatchewan assisting with escalated fire activity. These resources, which include FireRangers, Incident Management Teams and overhead staff, have been dispatched from both the West and East fire regions. Logistical support is also being provided with equipment including pumps, hoses and sprinkler kits for values protection. Video clips and photos of Ontario resources departing from the Sudbury airport August 05 are available at this link
Resource requests are made through the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) which coordinates requests for additional fire fighting personnel and equipment between the provinces and even internationally when the fire situation is beyond that jurisdiction’s capacity.
The weather forecast is calling for two sunny days but by Sunday more rain is expected in the region. The fire hazard is moderate to low.
East Fire Region
August 5, 2010
There was one new fire reported on August 4. North Bay 87, in Lady Evelyn Smoothwater Provincial Park, was confirmed this morning at 0.1 hectares in size. It has since been declared out. There are currently eight active fires in the region and there are no issues anticipated. The hazard will remain low to moderate throughout the region with a mix of sun and cloud with the possibility of scattered thundershowers.
Additional resources were dispatched today, August 5, to British Columbia. Today’s dispatch included 40 FireRangers and four support staff from the East Fire Region. On Sunday, August 1, FireRangers and support staff, a total of 107 personnel, were dispatched to British Columbia and Saskatchewan to assist with their respective fire situations. In total, there are 151 personnel from the East Fire Region assisting out of province.
Be FireSmart, visit www.ontario.ca/fireprevention for more information on how to prevent forest fires.
Residents are reminded that if found responsible for a forest fire, they can be charged under the Forest Fires Prevention Act and/or be liable for the costs of suppressing the fire. This cost can easily run into the tens of thousands of dollars.
To view the current forest fire hazard in your area, click here to view the Fire Danger Map.
310-FIRE (3473)
is the new, toll-free emergency forest fire reporting phone number across northern Ontario. The number will operate north of the French and Mattawa Rivers.
