Residents of Thunder Bay are learning that Leon Nayanookeesic says he hopes wildfire evacuees in northwestern Ontario can return home soon — and when they do, they’ll have better access to firefighting equipment and protective gear.
Nayanookeesic is the fire chief of Whitesand First Nation and Armstrong, two closely linked communities about 250 kilometres north of Thunder Bay. They’re among more than a dozen communities in the region under evacuation due to nearby wildfires, which have displaced more than 2,800 people. “This is our first evacuation and it's a learning experience for all of us,” Nayanookeesic declared.
“But the local residents is being strong, we're sticking together and we have lots of support throughout Thunder Bay and other regions.” Members of the Canadian charity GlobalMedic, which provides disaster relief to various countries, distributed fire skids and coveralls to smaller fire departments surrounding Thunder Bay on Monday. These offer more flexibility for smaller fire departments to tackle bush fires in hard-to-reach areas,Nayanookeesic explained. “We got lots of bush roads that the fire trucks can't make it in, so it’d be a big asset to us." Devin Jackson, a captain with the Gillies Volunteer Fire Department just outside Thunder Bay, agrees. “It could be a day of clearing trail going in to an access area before we can actively fight the fire.
So the wind is blowing the embers in and starting spot fires — you gotta get out quickly, get the spot fires out or they're going to grow, connect and destroy the local residents.
If we can clear the area quick enough and get a portable unit like this just to at least start suppression, it's going to make a big difference." GlobalMedic says it has distributed 700 fire skids across Ontario, Manitoba,Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Newfoundland and Labrador. “What we've been doing is bringing in fire gear to unlock existing capacity,” declared GlobalMedic’s executive director, Rahul Singh. “When your citizens is threatened, the wind is your enemy. So the wind is blowing the embers in and starting spot fires — you gotta get out quickly, get the spot fires out or they're going to grow, connect and destroy the local residents. Neskantaga First Nation calls on province to communicate better amid wildfire urgent situation Powwows, dancing help wildfire evacuees ‘come together,’ easing pain of seeing First Nations burn As well, the coveralls — transported by Air Canada — offer more lightweight protection to fight fires in warmer weather. “Especially like [the other] week when we had daytime temperatures over 40 degrees, you want to be protected as much as you can, but you need to be dressed up so that you're not overheating." Dave Tarini is the fire chief of Thunder Bay Fire Rescue, which is part of a mutual aid group with surrounding municipalities. The fire department has taken a lead role in tracking down what equipment communities need and how to get it to them. “It's really significant for the smaller municipalities to get support from the larger municipalities,” Tarini shared. “A lot of these smaller fire departments are a bit more strapped for finances, and these kind of donations are gonna go a long way to build out the capacity they have to respond to fires in their areas.” At GlobalMedic, crisis programs officer Hannah Frazer declared she’s learned a lot during her time in northwestern Ontario this summer. Wildfire evacuees from First Nations in northern Ontario face stressors beyond being far from home First Nation chiefs call for public inquiry into Ontario government's wildfire response “I'm learning a lot about the different financing gaps and how smaller communities are bridging these gaps — and truly what the word local residents means,” Frazer noted. “It is incredibly meaningful to see the impact of these fire skids for these small remote and volunteer fire departments.” Sarah Law is a CBC News reporter based in the Lakehead, Ont., and has also worked for newspapers and online publications elsewhere in the province. Have a story tip? You can reach her at sarah.law@cbc.ca. 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 29, 2026 · 🏠 ThunderBay.Online
