For the first time since July, the number of active forest fires burning in the northeast has fallen below 40.
As of late in the afternoon of Aug. 16, there are 38 active forest fires burning in the northeast. All are listed as either being held, under control or being observed, which means there isn’t a single out-of-control fire burning in the region.
No new fires have been confirmed.
Incident management teams are still in place to manage the priority fires in the Lady Evelyn fire cluster and Parry Sound 33.
Sudbury.com new media reporter Heather Green-Oliver visited the Parry Sound 33 command centre in Britt this week, speaking with officials and touring the fire zone in a helicopter. The video below details what she saw.
The Parry Sound 33 fire is still at 11,362 hectares as ground crews continue extinguishing hot spots.
The Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services branch of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry modified travel restrictions in the area of the Parry Sound 33 fire on Wednesday.
Travel into the fire perimeter remains restricted, however road and waterway restrictions in the area have been lifted, as of 6 p.m. on Aug. 15.
The Lady Evelyn cluster is still being held at 27,285 hectares. Crews continue to find smoke in the interior of the fire that they’re extinguishing. Helicopter bucketing continues to assist.
As firefighters gain control of the fires, the number of out-of-province and out-of-country crews seems to have dropped. There are now 170 firefighters and support staff. That number was above 300 at times.
A restricted fire zone remains in place in and around Greater Sudbury. The zones still affected include areas north of Rosseau, northwest to Espanola and Cartier, over to the Quebec border including Temagami and Mattawa north of the Mattawa River. This includes Parry Sound, Burk’s Falls, Powassan, North Bay and Greater Sudbury.
To see the interactive fire map provided by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, click here.
