Although three wildland fires are continuing to burn out of control in the Kawarthas region as of Tuesday (August 12) — including fire HAL018 in Hastings County and fires HAL019 and OFR001 in Kawartha Lakes — fire-fighting crews have been successful so far in preventing the fires from spreading.
That includes HAL019 east of Burnt River and south of Kinmount, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) during a virtual media briefing held by the City of Kawartha Lakes on Tuesday.
“The fire has been tied in, meaning that the suppression efforts intended to secure the fire’s perimeter have been secured,” said Evan Lizotte, a fire information officer with MNR’s Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services (AFFES).
Lizotte said the fire, which grew from five acres when it started on Saturday to 27 hectares by Sunday, is not yet under control. However, measures such as hose line, fire guard, or natural boundaries including shorelines and bodies of water are assisting “in preventing it from advancing further.”
MNR has assigned five ground crews to HAL019, supported by air attack as required.
A road closure remains in effect on County Road 49 between County Road 121 and Bury’s Green until further notice.
As for fire HAL018 in Hastings County, located on Crown land in the Municipality of Marmora and Lake south of Coe Hill in Wollaston Township and east of Aspley in North Kawartha Township, MNR has three crews on the ground who are using various suppression tactics, supported by water bombers.
The fire, which also started on Saturday and has grown from 11 to 12.8 hectares in size, has been surrounded by hose lines by MNR crews, according to North Kawartha fire chief Jesse Lambe, who provided North Kawartha Township council with an update on the fire on Tuesday morning due to its proximity to the township.
Lambe said that, due to the hot conditions and lack of precipitation, fires are “burning deep” — meaning that they can spread through root systems and require a considerable amount of time to put them out.
In response to a question from Mayor Carolyn Amyotte, Chief Lambe said MNR has not accepted offers of assistance from fire crews in the townships of North Kawartha and Marmora and Lake. North Kawartha also offered the MNR use of its fire station and heli-pad for logistics in fighting HAL018, but MNR does not need them.
A third fire around six kilometres southwest of Kirkfield in Kawartha Lakes, which MNR has labelled as OFR001 (for “outside of fire region,” referring to the MNR’s Haliburton fire management region), is a grass fire located just east of Prospect Road and north of Eldon Station Road. The fire began on Monday afternoon and grew from five to 33.5 hectares.
Kawartha Lakes Fire and Rescue Service requested the MNR’s assistance in fighting the fire, and MNR has assigned five ground crews supported by air attack, with five Kawartha Lakes fire stations also responding to the fire.
Prospect Road is closed from south of 1304 Prospect Road to north of 1375 Prospect Road while crews continue to fight OFR001.
During Tuesday’s City of Kawartha Lakes media briefing, Lizotte also noted a safety issue with “media aircraft flying over and around the active wildland fires.” He reminded media that Canadian aviation regulations prohibit unauthorized aircraft from operating over or within five miles of a forest fire and at an altitude of less than 3,000 feet.
Kawartha Lakes mayor Doug Elmslie echoed Lizotte’s comments, asking all residents and visitors, including the media, to stay away from fire areas.
“Even if you go up there, the fire is so deeply embedded in the forest that you wouldn’t be able to see anything, or get any good photo shots, because there’s nothing to see,” the mayor said. “You can’t even see smoke because the overhanging trees are keeping it more towards the ground.”
He reminded residents not to operate drones in the area of the fires, as it is both illegal to do so and a safety risk.
Mayor Elmslie added that a total fire ban is in effect for the entire municipality, and said “we will be policing that very stringently” and that there will be “zero tolerance for burning.” He asked any residents that see smoke to report it immediately to Kawartha Lakes Fire and Rescue Service at 705-324-2191.
He advised households to have an emergency kit easily accessible should evacuation becomes necessary.
“I stress at this time there is no evacuation order, and there is no thought at the moment of evacuation,” he said.
In response to a question from The Weather Network about the impact of debris from the spring ice storm on fire fighting efforts, Mayor Elmslie said the fallen trees and branches have made it more difficult.
“What I’m told by the fire fighters on site is that the forest is so thick and, with the debris on the ground, they can’t actively access it — it is very difficult for them,” he said.
A CBC reporter asked MNR whether a province-wide fire ban is being considered.
“We are not having conversations provincially or in either of the regions for a restricted fire zone at this time,” said Dayna Drouin, provincial coordinator of the information unit at AFFES, noting that a “lot of factors” are considered when implementing a restricted fire zone, including the province’s ability and resources to respond to fires.
“Right now we’re feeling confident that we have the resources available to respond to the current fires on the landscape as well as what’s potentially forecasted in the near future,” she said.
