Wildfires prompt First Nation in northwestern Ontario to order vulnerable residents to leave

Surrounding wildfires have prompted Kasabonika Lake First Nation, a remote community in northwestern Ontario, to issue an evacuation notice for vulnerable residents.

Chief Matthias Anderson told CBC News on Sunday that a state of emergency had been issued for the community and preparations were underway to send about 70 evacuees to southern Ontario by plane.

“Those are mostly elders, children, prenatal mothers and people with medical conditions,” Anderson said, adding that it was expected the evacuees would leave on Sunday evening to travel to Thunder Bay and then on to Toronto.

The weekend saw a steep rise in wildfire activity in northwestern Ontario. On its Ontario Forest Fires Facebook page, the province reported that more than 50 new wildland fires had been confirmed in the region since Friday afternoon, following widespread lightning activity. As of Sunday morning, there were 59 active fires in the region.

Five of those new fires are located within a 20-kilometre radius of Kasabonika Lake First Nation, according to a news release issued Saturday by Ontario Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services. They include Nipigon 16, covering more than 200 hectares, which is located south of the community and considered not under control.

About six fires were surrounding Kasabonika on the weekend, Anderson said, including two new fires that started up on Saturday and were affecting the community. Another blaze, Nipigon 12, which is listed on Ontario’s forest fire information map as being over 1,000 hectares in size, was confirmed on Thursday and is not under control.

“The southeast fire has smoke coming into our community. And the one towards our southwest will possibly affect our transmission line, our power,” he said, adding that the community is currently running on backup generator power, as the grid line had been turned off as a precaution.

As of Sunday afternoon, there were no plans to evacuate other members of the community, the chief said, but the situation could change based on the status of the surrounding fires and consultations with provincial officials.

Kasabonika is located about 450 kilometres north of Sioux Lookout and 600 kilometres north of Thunder Bay. It is part of Treaty 9 and a member of the Shibogama First Nations Council.