Staff Writer
memara@fortfrances.com
The fires in northwestern Ontario are at unprecedented levels with drought and lightning taking most of the credit.
Chris Marchand, fire information officer with the Aviation Forest Fire and Emergency Services centre in Dryden, said the numbers of new fire starts is a cause for concern.
There are currently 165 active fires in the region. Of these fires, 84 fires are not under control, 13 fires are being held, 48 are being observed and 20 fires are under control. There were 70 new fires reported in the last 24 hours.
“That’s the result of lightning that’s been tracking through our regions during these drought-like conditions,” Marchand said. “The firefighters were able to call 11 fires out and we’re seeing a real focus on responding quickly to new fires, and trying to reduce the number of active fires on the landscape.”