First forest fire of the year forces evacuation
Several people escape unharmed from cabins and homes near Madeline Lake; blaze now under control
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Wednesday, May 18, 2016
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The first forest fire of the year around Yellowknife is finally under control after forcing cabin and home owners on the Ingraham Trail to flee Saturday.
A Buffalo Airways L-188 Electra aircraft, operated on behalf of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, drops fire retardant on a blaze near Madeline Lake about 25 km northeast of Yellowknife on Saturday afternoon. The first forest fire of the season in the Yellowknife area forced the evacuation of several cabins and homes. No one was hurt and there is no word on what caused the fire which was still smouldering yesterday. - John McFadden/NNSL photo |
Judy McLinton, spokesperson for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, said fire crews were mopping up the scene of the fire near Madeline Lake, about 25 km east of Yellowknife, yesterday.
The fire, which broke out Saturday afternoon, had grown to approximately 0.08 square kilometres by the time fire crews got it under control. A helicopter and Buffalo Airways L-188 aircraft were deployed to fight the fire, along with three ground crews from Yellowknife, Hay River and Fort Providence. The Yellowknife Fire Department also responded to the fire.
No one was hurt in the fire but it forced several people from their homes and cabins along an access road at the west end of Madeline Lake, in some cases only a few kilometres from the flames.
The fire is the first crews with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources have had to deal with this season, according to fire operations manager Richard Olsen, who led a news conference about the blaze Monday afternoon.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Olsen said he understood the fire crept to within four kilometres of some cabins, adding with the windy, dry conditions there was a definite risk to some of them.
Firefighters set up some sprinklers at the homes and cabins, according to Dennis Marchiori, the city's director of public safety.
Vera Nesbitt was one of several people who fled their cabins. She waited nervously in her vehicle parked at the end of her road on the Ingraham Trail along with her daughter and their two dogs.
"We had to leave. We were scared. Somebody told my husband that we had to leave," said Nesbitt on Saturday.
"I saw the smoke. We only had time to pack the dogs and a few things. My husband is still there putting up sprinklers."
Olsen said conditions are ripe for fires right now. He is pleading with the public to be very careful because of the tinder dry conditions in the Yellowknife area.
"Conditions still remain dry on the ground from Yellowknife into the Deh Cho. There are indications that it's going to be hot and dry this summer," said Olsen.
"The overall Canadian outlook is that it's going to be a fairly active fire season. As a result, we're still anticipating and preparing for the possibility of (fire) starts that could occur and because of the dry conditions it will be more difficult to extinguish them than we would expect in a normal season."
Human-caused fires are a particular concern as people starting heading out onto the land with the warmer weather and starting campfires, said Olsen.
He is encouraging people to avoid starting unnecessary fires and to make sure their fire is out before leaving.
"Community protection as a whole is a shared responsibility between individual homeowners, the community and government," said Olsen.
It won't be until next week before all 35, four-member fire crews in the NWT will be "on strength."
He added the two aircraft the department deployed to help fight the fire in the Fort McMurray area earlier this month have since returned but the department continues to help in jurisdictions outside the NWT.
"On Friday we did export three individuals, a situation unit leader and two radio operators to help out with fire response in Alberta," said Olsen.
"Additionally, we are planning to export a 20-person firefighter crew to Alberta on Wednesday the 18th. We'll continue to help other jurisdictions when we can."
