There are two new forest fires burning in the Greater Sudbury region, the Aviation Forest Fire and Emergency Services reported Sunday afternoon.
The first, Sudbury 31, is not under control and covers 1 hectare. The second, Sudbury 32, is also not under control and covers 0.1 of a hectare.
There are currently 10 other active fires in the Northeast region:
– Sudbury 28 is being held at 7.1 hectares;
– Bancroft 4 is being held at 5 hectares;
– North Bay 12 is under control at 1.2 hectares;
– Sudbury 30 is being held at 0.3 of a hectare;
– Hearst 6 is under control at 2.5 hectares;
– Timmins 5 is being held at 0.8 of a hectare;
– Sault Ste. Marie 21 is being held at 1.2 hectares;
– Wawa 7 is under control at 294 hectares;
– Hearst 4 is under control at 475 hectares; and,
– Hearst 5 is under control at 2,574 hectares.
“The forest fire hazard is currently high to extreme, excluding the Wawa and Chapleau areas which are seeing a low to moderate fire hazard,” the Aviation Forest Fire and Emergency Services said in a news release.
From April 1 to Oct. 31, waterways are used by CL-415 water bombers to suppress wildfires. When CL-415 waterbombers approach a lake, people in watercraft are asked to move close to the shore so the waterbombers can perform their scoop.
“This ensures safety for both the people and the aircraft,” the release said. “It also supports the firefighting effort because a waterbomber will not scoop from a lake if encroaching watercraft pose a safety hazard. This in turn causes a delay in waterbombing on the fire as they wait for the watercraft to clear the area, or have to seek a water source further from the fire to scoop safely.”
Waterbombers often perform circuits when fighting a fire so more than one waterbomber could be scooping from the waterway in close intervals.
For further tips on how to be FireSmart, visit: ontario.ca/firesmart. For more information about the current fire situation and the active fires map: ontario.ca/forestfire.
