Nearly 600 wildfire evacuees from Kasabonika Lake First Nation are expected to start making their way home Thursday from Toronto.
The remote Oji-Cree community declared a state of emergency June 27 due to escalating wildfire activity. The first wave of evacuees were flown out the evening of June 28, landing in Thunder Bay before flying further south to Toronto.
“In the beginning, it was very scary because we could see the forest fire visibly from our band office — five kilometres is not far away,” said Chantel Stoney, a band councillor with Kasabonika Lake, in an interview with CBC News Tuesday.
“I’m very glad that we got most of our vulnerable people out right away.”
While fire crews continue to tackle a cluster of five wildfires near Kasabonika Lake, the situation has stabilized. The wildfire evacuees, consisting of the community’s most vulnerable members, make up almost half the First Nation’s population.
“They are just patiently waiting. They know how important it was to get evacuated due to their safety,” Stoney said.
“I’m eager to have our community members back because their mental health is what matters too, right? They’re probably missing their own homes, their own bedroom and their routine.”
Nearly 600 wildfire evacuees from Kasabonika Lake First Nation in Toronto
A total of 13 charter planes will be making their way from Toronto, stopping in Thunder Bay for fuel before heading north to the First Nation.
The community is hoping to have all evacuees home within four to six days, depending on aircraft availability, Stoney said.
Nastassia Varela, a spokesperson for Ontario’s Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Response, Jill Dunlop, provided an emailed statement to CBC News Tuesday afternoon, saying the ministry “is working closely with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Indigenous Services Canada to co-ordinate the return of community members.”
Still, there are more than 70 wildfires burning across the northwest. As of Tuesday evening, nine were under control, 13 were considered not under control, and the rest were being observed.
Kasabonika Lake First Nation is about 450 kilometres north of Sioux Lookout and 600 kilometres north of Thunder Bay.
Wildfire evacuees have been staying in hotels near the Toronto Pearson International Airport. This is the community’s first evacuation in 20 years.
The First Nation has received support from ISN Maskwa, an Indigenous emergency operations centre, to help keep evacuees safe and occupied.
“The support team that’s down there is keeping them busy,” Stoney said, adding that evacuees were able to visit Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada and Canada’s Wonderland.
It was easier to keep evacuees all in one location 20 years ago. However, the community has grown since then, Stoney said, making things more challenging.
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Stoney said she and her fellow leaders are grateful for everyone’s support, including ISN Maskwa, provincial ministries and fire crews on the ground and in the skies.
As well, she said those who stayed behind have made sure the First Nation’s essential operations continued, its store remained open and that people’s pets have been taken care of.
“Even the little things mattered, including the drivers, the people handling all the bags when our evacuees had to leave,” said Stoney. “The people that were part of our tech support, our support personnel.”
The forest fire danger rating ranges from low to extreme throughout the region, with much of the Nipigon and Thunder Bay sectors and parts of the Sioux Lookout sector under extreme hazard.
The fire hazard was low around Kasabonika Lake as of Tuesday evening.
There are 12 FireRanger crews, eight fire management personnel, three helicopters and two fixed wing aircraft assigned to the cluster of fires around Kasabonika Lake, fire information officer Victoria Lee with Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services told CBC News Tuesday.
The community received about 20 millimetres of rain overnight Monday, which has offered some reprieve. However, forest fuels remain dry and are still susceptible to fires caused by lightning strikes, which can ignite fires beneath the forest floor.
Evacuation effort continues in Kasabonika Lake First Nation, Ont.
Nearly 600 wildfire evacuees from Kasabonika Lake First Nation staying in Toronto
“Once the weather dries up, winds increase and temperatures rebound, holdover lightning fires from convective activity can appear up to about a week later,” Lee said.
The largest fire near the community, Nipigon 12, remains not under control at 2,119 hectares.
As for a fire called Nipigon 16, the northern perimeter of which is six kilometres southeast of the First Nation’s airport, “fire ranger crews are continuing to make good progress establishing hose lines on the western and northern perimeter of the fire, with support from bucketing helicopters targeting hotspots,” Lee said.
The latest information on active wildfires and forest fire danger ratings can be found on Ontario’s interactive forest fire map online.
