An aerial view of Fort Frances 4 wildfire. Image: Carney McConnachie, AFFES Air Attack Officer, Ontario Forest Fires Facebook page
There are 11 active wildfires across northwest Ontario as of May 22, with seven not under control and several under emergency restrictions.
The largest fire is Kenora 20, which has reached 31,276 hectares and remains out of control. Crews from Ontario and British Columbia are working on both Kenora 20 and nearby Kenora 14, using helicopters, hose lines, and infrared scans to locate hot spots. Winds from the east are currently helping with suppression efforts.
Kenora 14 is 1,607 hectares in size and also not under control. Crews have made progress along the fire’s eastern perimeter.
Emergency area orders are now in place around both Kenora fires, banning access to roads, lakes, waterways, and Crown lands in the affected zones. Travel permits are required for any authorized access.
In Fort Frances, a fire northeast of Atikokan known as Fort Frances 4 remains stable at 3,593 hectares. No growth has been seen in several days, and the evacuation alert for that area has been lifted. However, road and waterway restrictions remain in effect.
Sioux Lookout 3, at 1,849 hectares, also continues to burn with active suppression efforts underway. An updated emergency order restricts travel across forest access roads and lakes in the Savant Lake area.
Two new fires were confirmed on May 21:
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Dryden 8, located just south of the Dryden airport, is 0.1 hectares and not under control.
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Thunder Bay 9, south of the Thunder Bay airport, is approximately 5 hectares and being fought by waterbombers.
Despite recent rain and cooler temperatures in some areas, forested land remains extremely dry. Fire danger is low to moderate in the eastern part of the region but rises to high and extreme levels in the west, particularly around Red Lake, Sioux Lookout, Kenora, and Fort Frances.
Conditions on Thursday, while expected to be cooler on Thursday will continue to see high winds that will create challenging conditions for firefighters, however, there is rain forecasted to begin in the region starting Friday, which should offer some respite.
Maps, updates, and hazard alerts are available on Ontario’s forest fire interactive map.
