AVIATION, FOREST FIRE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES
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Northeast fire region forest fire report
Northeast Region
- As of the early evening of June 10, there are four active wildland fires in the region.
- Chapleau 4 is located north of Hwy 101 between Timmins and Chapleau. It is being held at 16.5 hectares.
- Sudbury 2 is under control at 0.2 of a hectare, on the southwest side of Windy Lake.
- Sudbury 6 is under control at 0.5 of a hectare north of the French River.
- Timmins 2 covers 5000 hectares on the west side of Hwy 144, approximately 4 km west of Gogama. More information below.
- At the time of this update, the fire hazard is mostly low in the northeast region; with the exception of the southeastern most part of the region which is showing a moderate to high hazard.
Fire of note:
Timmins Fire 002
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) continues to actively respond to a forest fire in Timmins District, known as TIM2. This fire is currently classed as Not Under Control (NUC) and is now estimated to be 5,000 hectares in size.
This morning (June 10, 2019) ministry staff were able to remap the fire, and with the smoke dissipating due to the rain, they were able to get a more detailed perimeter which is why the estimate size of the fire has decreased.
The fire remains approximately four-kilometres west of the community of Gogama. The fire is burning on the west side of Highway 144 and running parallel to the roadway.
Over the weekend, TIM002 presented extreme fire behaviour. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry responded with strategic initial attack and aggressive aerial fire suppression.
Fire behaviour and the spread potential depend greatly on the weather pattern. Throughout the weekend the combination of warm temperatures, moderate winds and low relative humidity permitted TIM002 to spread and increase in size. The low pressure system that moved into the area over night (June 9 into June 10, 2019) brought much need precipitation, cloud cover and cooler temperatures. This change in weather pattern will help FireRangers on the ground establish hoselines.
The fire activity has been relatively quiet today and tomorrow is expected to be another quiet day, but there could be a bit more smoke as the rain clears.
By the end of day, its expected that the following resources will be assigned to TIM002:
- 1 Incident Management Team
- Small basecamp established in Gogama
- 20 FireRanger crews
- Rotating through CL-415 Waterbombers and Twin Otters, where required
- 7 Helicopters
- Multiple Heavy equipment to build dozer guard
Additional resources will be allocated as needed.
Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry staff are currently in the community of Gogama to aid community leaders and area residents.
OPP has advised AFFES that highway 144 has reopened to traffic after being temporarily closed June 9, 2019. Stay advised of changing conditions by monitoring Ontario511 or@OPPCommunicationsNER on Twitter, and Ontario Provincial Police-Northeast Region on Facebook.
As a precautionary measure, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry’s Timmins District has recommended to the Gogama Local Services Board, that a 2-hour evacuation alert notice be in place for residents in the Gogama and surrounding areas. The community of Gogama currently has a voluntary evacuation in place. For more information or questions related to the alert or voluntary evacuation, please contact the Gogama Local Services Board (705-894-2555) or the Gogama Fire Chief (705-288-7178).
This fire was confirmed on June 6, 2019 and like all wildland fires in Ontario, the cause of this fire will be investigated.
Smoke in northeastern Ontario
The precipitation that has moved into the area will provide some relief from smoke drift that residents in areas north of Gogama such as Mattagami First Nation, Kenogamissi Lake, Timmins, South Porcupine, Porcupine and Nighthawk Lake may have been experiencing.
Tonight, smoke drift may be noticeable in the community of Gogama as winds start coming out of the northwest.
Travel restrictions in parts of Timmins district due to forest fire imposed by MNRF Timmins District
Pursuant to the Emergency Area Order signed June 10, 2019, an Implementation Order has been issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry prohibiting access and travel in portions of Timmins District where there are public safety hazards as a result of fire activity from Timmins #002.
The Order restricts travel, access and use in an identified area (see attached map below) and may be modified regularly to reflect changing fire conditions.
This measure has been put in place to ensure public safety while allowing fire personnel to safely and effectively suppress the fires in the identified area.
All travel and use of Jack Road from the intersection of Jack Road and Highway 144, westerly to the Ontario Power Generation Mesomekenda Lake Dam, at Mesomekenda Lake is prohibited.
All travel and use of Gogama Unit Road from the intersection of Highway 144 and the Gogama Unit Road, northerly to the north end of Carter Township (UTM 17N 440574 5299137) is prohibited.
All use and occupation of Crown Land or within 500 metres of the described closed roads within this area is prohibited.
If a member of the public believes that access within the restricted travel area is necessary for non-recreational purposes, please call 705-235-1334 to request a travel authorization permit. MNRF will review the request for access based on the rationale provided, local fire activity, and the potential fire risk.
Please visit ontario.ca/forestfire to view the current access restrictions and fire activity as this site is being updated regularly.
See the restricted travel and access areas on the PDF map attached (Note: this map gets updated regularly).
More Information
For updates on highway closures, check Ontario511 or @OPPCommunicationsNER on Twitter, and Ontario Provincial Police-Northeast Region on Facebook.
For information about the current forest fire situation: 1-888-220-7242
For updates on the fire situation, visit ontario.ca/forestfire or follow us on Twitter @ONforestfires.
To report a forest fire located north of the French and Mattawa rivers, please dial 310-FIRE
Report prepared by Heather Pridham and Isabelle Chenard
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