Whatì residents: ‘You will likely notice the landscape looking different’

Whatì residents have returned home after the all clear was sounded Friday afternoon and the Yellowknife Evacuation Centre will close down on Sunday at noon.

The Northwestel field in the Fieldhouse will remain closed as our staff work towards getting the field back to regular working order.

This work will be completed before the end of the coming week, at which time the public will be notified.

All other amenities and programs within the Fieldhouse and Multiplex will re-open to the public on Monday.

NWT Fire advises Whatì residents that when returning home, to avoid the wildfire-affected areas as falling trees, continued heat on the ground and ash pits are real hazards.

There may be fire crews near the airstrip working on completing some mop-up tasks. Please give them the space they need to work.

Stated NWT Fire on Saturday: “You may still see some fire activity and smoke in the distance or along the Tlicho All-Season Road. The fire is not under control, but the areas which most threaten the community are contained.

“A huge shoutout to all the firefighters, pilots and other essential workers who stayed in Whatı̀ to ensure its protection. Residents would not be coming home if it weren’t for your efforts.”

As a precaution, crews are maintaining structure protection at the community’s edge and around residential areas — with sprinklers being run periodically throughout the day to ensure the system is ready to run.

Fort Providence Fire SS014 was last mapped at 110,755 hectares.

Its southeast flank is within 900 metres of southeastern edge of Fort Providence and has been contained.

“Good progress was made on the extinguishment of the main ignition line northeast of the community,” stated NWT Fire.

Heavy equipment is continuing digging up fuel right at the fire’s edge up to 30 feet on the wildfire perimeter to the west of the highway to prevent future growth towards Highway 3 and other values in the area.

The Town of Hay River is hosting hundreds of Fort Providence evacuees.

Stated a social media post from the Town:

“As we move into the second weekend of hosting, we recognize and acknowledge how special the people of Fort Providence are. There has been so much positivity, politeness, and appreciation demonstrated by those displaced from their homes through a challenging time.

“Fort Providence leadership have been engaged and working hard collectively for their residents and have had a demonstrated presence at the reception centre updating evacuees.

“The Deh Gáh Got’ı̨ę First Nation is supporting security at the reception centre to ensure the health and safety of everyone in the facility through adherence of facility rules.”

Jean Marie River fire FS014 is at 30,000 hectares and remains 15 kilometres northwest of the Dehcho community at closest active point.

NWT Fire stated that this wildfire has been fought since detection on June 27 — with direct action to contain the fire having escaped containment efforts, driven by severe drought and extreme weather events.

Some key numbers:

• Within one kilometre east of Highway 1 at kilometre marker 454
• 3.5 kilometres southeast of the Fort Simpson Ferry Landing
• Three kilometres east of the Liard River at 12 Mile Island at closest point
• Five kilometres south of Fort Simpson Airport on opposite side of Liard River
• 13 kilometres south and 15 kilometres east of Fort Simpson

Winds Saturday could cause growth to the south and east — closer to Jean Marie River — in active parts of the fire on southern flanks.

NWT Fire stated that the wildfire has not reached Highway 1 as of Saturday afternoon..

“However, despite favourable winds, some limited forest fuel-driven (rather than wind-driven) fire growth could cause the fire to reach Highway 1 today,” stated a release.

“This may still cause highway closures today. We are in contact with highways staff consistently and they are monitoring the situation.

The fire is currently burning mostly on the surface without much burning in the treetops on the west flank (closest to the Highway and Liard River).

Wildfire officials have confirmed that fibre line in the area is buried to protect against wildfire.

The Village of Fort Simpson has been proactive in ensuring people know what to do if a communications outage happens.

The wildfire is not assessed to be a threat to Fort Simpson or the Fort Simpson airport at this time.

The Liard River provides a strong buffer to fire growth to the Fort Simpson side of the river.

Stated NWT Fire: “Significant suppression has been done on the southwest end of the fire closest to Jean Marie River in the last few days to help reduce the likelihood of growth towards Jean Marie River.”

There have been no losses of homes reported at this time.

Crews and the Incident Management Team are working to hold fire to the east of Highway 1 and prevent growth towards Jean Marie River.

Structure protection specialists are maintaining sprinklers and have a plan in place to patrol for and fight spot fires during any encroachment in Jean Marie River should that occur.