Despite a fairly dry July, particularly in Thunder Bay, it’s so far been a fairly light forest fire season across the region compared to previous years, with some blazes being extinguished quickly.
According to Ontario’s Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services (AFFES) agency, there have been 189 fires recorded across the province as of Monday, compared to the 10-year average of 463 for the same period.
Nearly half so far this season broke out east of Northwestern Ontario.
The AFFES agency says that the amount of area burned so far this season is quite small compared to the 10-year average — 18,436 hectares, compared to more than 192,347 ha for the same period.
Of the 18,436 burned to date, only 634 ha have burned in the Northwest.
In 2023, during one of Ontario’s worst forest fire seasons in memory, nearly 396,000 ha had burned over parts of the province by near the end of July.
Ontario firefighters have been efficient this season nipping blazes in the bud.
On Friday, a small fire that was discovered about 35 kilometres west of Kakabeka Falls was declared out later the same day, an AFFES agency spokeswoman said.
The cause of that fire wasn’t immediately available, although every blaze is investigated.
“Most of the region has seen widespread lightning over the past few days which can be the source of holdover fires,” the AFFES’s Alison Bebuziak said.
“As such, we are carefully monitoring for new (fire) starts from lightning,” she added.
As of Monday, 10 of the 25 wildfires burning across Ontario were located in the Northwest.
Meanwhile, very little rainfall has fallen on Thunder Bay so far this month.
Environment Canada says only 34 millimetres has fallen on the city, compared to the nearly 90 mm it normally receives for all of July.
Much of the moisture that’s hit the region has fallen west or north of the city, said meteorologist Geoff Coulson.
Though temperatures in the city this week are to peak during the day around 28 C — about three degrees warmer than normal — Coulson said he wouldn’t categorize it as a heat wave.
However, Coulson added, high humidity levels could make it feel more like “in the low 30s.”
Pleasant temperatures of about 24 C are expected to return to Thunder Bay on the weekend, Coulson said.
