Cigarette-caused forest fire extinguished
South Slave under lightning warning as fire season persists
April Hudson
Northern News Services
Thursday, August 13, 2015
DEH GAH HOT'IE KOE/FORT PROVIDENCE
A fire 14 kilometres outside Fort Providence has fire crews reminding people to watch what they do.
The fire began Aug. 6 after someone discarded a cigarette.
"It was there for a while. It was probably burning for a day or so," said Daniel Allaire, manager of forests for the South Slave region.
"The fire was small - only four metres by four metres - and it wasn't doing much. It was just smouldering, but it was close to some buildings there and could have become a problem."
Allaire said the fire was about 30 metres away from the riverbank, and despite some rain falling on the Fort Providence area, the cigarette did not go out.
"Right now, the fire indexes are on high," he said. "People should properly dispose of their cigarettes and make sure their campfires are out. It's still pretty dry out there, even though we've had some rain this summer. It only takes a few days of 25 C-plus temperature to put us right back where we were before."
The Fort Providence area has also seen some lightning over the past week. There are currently 21 active fires in the South Slave and already another fire has sprung up 67 kilometres away from Kakisa.
"That one is ongoing," Allaire said. "Weather forecasts are calling for a lot of lightning and there might be some rain with it, but it will just be scattered rain from the south. We're expecting a fairly significant lightning outbreak here."
Fire danger remains high to extreme across the South Slave for the remainder of the week.
"The fire season is not over yet," Allaire said. "On average, it usually ends by mid-August, but last year the season ran through August and even into September. It looks like it might do the same thing this year."
On Aug. 7, the Department of Transportation closed Highway 3 between Fort Providence and Behchoko so crews could implement fire control measures and back burns.
In the Deh Cho region, fire danger remains high but is expected to drop off toward the end of the week.
No new fires in the Deh Cho had been reported as of Tuesday afternoon.
