Forest fire hazard high in northeast, with one fire spanning 350 hectares

Fire hazard levels for most of northeastern Ontario currently range from high to extreme with 7 active fires in the region as of early Monday afternoon.

As the warm weather arrives, the forest fire hazard is already high across the northeast region, with seven active wildland fires burning as of Monday evening.

Three of those are considered out of control.

Two new fires were confirmed Monday evening, including Sudbury 5, located on the southeast shore of Kenabigoons Lake, and Sudbury 6, located on an island on the North Channel of French River, about one kilometre northeast of Whippoorwill Road.

Fire information officer Alison Lake with the Ministry of Natural Resources said a portion of the region is showing extreme fire hazard, running near Chapleau, extending southward to Elliot Lake and westward toward Montreal River Harbour.

Lake said Timmins 9 was confirmed late Sunday afternoon and is not under control. It spans 350 hectares and is located about 1.4 kilometres east of Bell Lake and 8.8 kilometres west of Highway 144.

“There are seven crews assigned to this fire,” she said.

“It also received the initial attack through aircraft. We had three CL415s attend, two Twin Otter waterbombers with the lead bird dog, actioning the fire late yesterday afternoon and into the early evening. There’s been no impact from this fire on Highway 144 as of this morning, June 1.”

Another large wildland fire is Sudbury 2, which is about 47 hectares.

“It’s approximately three kilometres north of Highway 17 and one kilometre east of Agnew Lake,” Lake said.

“This fire is being held. Sudbury 3 is 2.8 hectares in size and is located west of Secord Road, which is about two kilometres west of Highway 69. This fire is also now under control.”

Two new fires were also reported late Sunday – but both are now considered out.

Lake said the cause of each of the fires is part of a formal investigation “to look at the general cause, the source of ignition (and the) responsible parties, if that can be determined. This includes the completion of a fire investigation report.”

She encouraged residents to keep a close eye on the quickly evolving fire situation.

“It’s still technically spring here, and I know a lot of people are outside cleaning up yards, cleaning up camps after winter,” Lake said.

“We would really encourage people to think about composting yard waste rather than burning it. Composting is a lot safer with respect to the fire hazard. And be very, very careful if you do have a fire. Take note of the fire regulations that we have and also stay informed.”

Up-to-date information on the forest fire situation in the region can be found here.