Thunder Bay, ON — There were 139 active wildland fires burning in northwestern Ontario as of Tuesday afternoon, according to Ontario Forest Fires.
Of those, 45 were listed as not under control, five were being held, eight were under control and the rest were being observed. The largest wildfire in the region, known as the Lakehead region 36, remains out of control, and spans more than 318,000 hectares. "FireRanger crews, helicopters and heavy equipment operators are assigned to suppression efforts," Ontario's Aviation, Forest Fires and Crisis Services (AFFES) noted in Monday evening's update.
"Favourable weather conditions have helped to reduce fire behaviour, allowing for crews to make good progress on the fire line." Forest fire danger ratings are mostly low across the northwest region — with areas of moderate hazard in the Kenora, Dryden and Fort Frances sectors — and a pocket of high hazard in the Sioux Lookout area. "With cooler temperatures and cloud cover, fire activity on existing fires has remained minimal," Ontario Forest Fires advised, in an post on Facebook on Tuesday. "Although the fire hazard remains low across the northwest region, lightning associated with overnight precipitation still has the potential to cause new fire starts. The public is advised to exercise extreme caution, as holdover lightning fires may emerge in the coming days." The province also confirmed two new fires have been discovered in the northwest region: Crews were also able to make good progress on several fires, including, but not limited to: According to the province'sinteractive highway map, the closure of Highway 527 at Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek – Gull Bay First Nation – has been extended to the Highway 811 junction.
In aFacebook post on Monday, the province noted that "Wawa 17 is not under control at 37.2 hectares and is located approximately 15 kilometres northeast of Pic Mobert and east of White Lake.
Highway 811 is also closed due to ongoing wildfire activity, apart from area traffic evacuating the area. The First Nation is now under a mandatory evacuation order after lightning brought the total number of wildfires surrounding the area to six, according to a release issued by the area early Tuesday morning. In an update issued Monday evening, the Ontario Provincial Authorities (OPP) North West Region declared: "The OPP is currently assisting the MNR with an evacuation order of Gull Bay First Nation, which was previously under a self-evacuation. Individuals living in areas under mandatory evacuation orders have been asked to leave their residence immediately and seek safety away from active fires." The officers shared other communities are being monitored and residents are pressed to stay informed and be prepared to act quickly should further evacuation orders or advisories be issued. As of Monday evening, there were 43 active wildland fires in the northeast region. Of these, five were not under control, one was being held, five were under control and the rest were being observed. In aFacebook post on Monday, the province noted that "Wawa 17 is not under control at 37.2 hectares and is located approximately 15 kilometres northeast of Pic Mobert and east of White Lake. Four FireRanger crews are continuing to make good progress on this fire." Forest fire danger ratings range from low to moderate across the northeast, with a pocket of high hazard in the Cochrane district. This year’s wildfire season has forced more than a dozen communities and areas to evacuate in recent days, including 11 First Nations. As of Monday,roughly 2,415 people had evacuated to host communities across Ontario, including the Lakehead region, Kenora, Fort Frances, Lac Seul, Sioux Lookout, Red Lake, Barrie, Niagara Falls and Toronto. A total of 312 air purifiers, 84 air filters and five air scrubbers have also been deployed to several communities affected by wildfire smoke, according to the Ontario Corps. As part of these efforts, Feed Ontario and the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres are transporting and distributing food to evacuees. GlobalMedic has also delivered essential supplies to the Thunder Bay reception centre at the Fort William Gardens. As of Monday, the Lakehead of Thunder Bay was reopening many outdoor facilities and programs that were temporarily impacted bywildfire smoke. Municipality crews are expected to resume outdoor work with enhanced health and safety measures, including, where appropriate, respiratory protection and more frequent breaks. Essential municipality services, including transit and urgent response services, are also running. The municipality noted it will continue to monitor conditions closely and is prepared to adjust operations should air quality deteriorate. It is a priority for CBC to create products that are accessible to all in Canada including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered onCBC Gem..
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📍 Source: CBC News Thunder Bay · By: CBC News Staff · 🗓️ July 22, 2026 · 🏠 ThunderBay.Online
