Staff
More than two dozen new fires were reported in the Northwest Region by day’s end yesterday.
Following a summer-long trend, most of these occurred in the Red Lake and Sioux Lookout districts, the Ministry of Natural Resources said in a press release.
However, a number of new fires also have been reported recently in the Kenora District, and some in the Dryden, Nipigon, and Thunder Bay districts over the weekend, which is a reflection of lightning strikes associated with storm systems that tracked across the region.
These include five in Dryden District, four in Kenora District, and three in Sioux Lookout District.
There currently is 110 active fires in the region, covering 600,221.9 hectares.
There’s been 643 blazes since the fire season officially began April 1, charring 610,833.9 ha in all.
The MNR said firefighters and air attack continue to do “an amazing job” with the ongoing fire situation.
They also reported gruelling long hose lays from the water source to the fires.
For example, on two Red Lake fires yesterday, just over 3,900 metres (almost four km) of hose were placed around the fires.
Sunny skies and dry conditions are forecast for the region heading into this week, the MNR noted.