Fort Simpson (Aug 11/06) - An unusually quiet fire season is winding down in the Deh Cho.

This year, there have only been 20 fires in the region compared to 80-100 in a normal year, said Loyal Letcher, the manager of forests for Environment and Natural Resources.

The number of fires has been below average across the Northwest Territories, but above average in Alberta.

"It's the way the weather patterns go, it's mother nature," said Letcher.

Fire ratings are currently low to moderate in the Deh Cho and few fires are expected to start, said Letcher.

Weather patterns will help with rain showers and a cold front moving in.

With the season ending there are still seven fires that are currently being monitored in the area although none pose a major danger to structures, said Letcher. Smoke rising from two of the fires was visible during the week from Fort Simpson.

A fire covering 2,127 ha is approximately 24 miles northwest of the village on the other side of the Mackenzie River. The fire, designated fire 17, started from an earlier fire that was fought and was thought to be out, said Letcher. It smouldered for 11 days before starting again.

On August 8, fire 17 was 5 km away from a cabin, 7.5 km away from an older cabin and 8.4 km from an Enbridge pump station.

A sprinkler system was set up around one cabin, said Letcher and measures will be taken if the fire moves closer to the valuable structures.

Fires are a natural part of the environment so they are only fought when there are values at risk, he said.

A second fire seen from the island is fire 15 with a 348 ha burn area. Smoke is not expected to be a problem unless the wind moves to the northwest, said Letcher.

In the Deh Cho, a fire was also reported on August 6 northeast of Wrigley on the opposite side of the river. The two-ha fire is close to one cabin.Other fires in the area include three outside of Trout Lake that haven't grown in size and one in the mountains near the Yukon boarder.

With the season ending fire towers and bases are being closed down and fire crews are finishing their contracts. By August 11 only two fire crews, a helicopter and overhead personnel in Fort Simpson are expected to be on duty, said Letcher.

With fewer fires in the region it has also been a quiet year for fire crews.

"It's been a really slow season," said Gilbert Cazon, the assistant general manager for Nogha Enterprises.

Luckily for the four Nogha crews there were fires in other areas, said Cazon. The crews kept their knowledge active and current during those fires.

The four crews are all currently exported with two working in Norman Wells and two in Hay River. Two of the crews were expected to finish work on August 11, said Cazon.This was a normal year for export trips with each crew doing at least two. Some are on their third, said Cazon. All of the crews also had a chance to work in Alberta.

"The guys wouldn't mind going out again," said Cazon.