While British Columbia is battling hundreds of forest fires, Thunder Bay is experiencing a temporary reprieve says an Ministry of Natural Resources official.
MNR fire management supervisor said although fires in the region got an early start, some in March which Manol said is unheard of, the past month has been slower than average. Thanks to a humid air mass from the Southern United Staes, Manol said the wet weather has helped keep fires under control. Thunder Bay has had 54 fires this year with four active fires which the MNR is letting burn Manol said.
"We’ve been successful on initial attack for all of those fires we don’t have any escaped fires right now," Manol said. "We do have four fires that are burning way up in the far North but we’re taking advantage of the ecological roll of fire to renew the Boreal forest so we’re managing those and allowing them to burn naturally they’re not anywhere near any valuables or people not bothering anybody."
But Manol said the region isn’t out of the woods yet. In the next few weeks he said the weather will get drier which means more fires.
"Things start to dry up in August again and we start to pick up lightning fires mid to late August," Manol said.
Until then, 200 fire fighters from the province are helping British Columbia with its fires and another 100 from Ontario are expected to head West this Thursday.
With 330 fires in the region so far this year, Manol said the number of human caused fires has been higher than average due to drier weather in the Spring.
"Unfortunately there are still people that are careless around their rural residences and while recreating in the forest who start fires," Manol said.
Still, he credits the people in Northwestern Ontario with being very helpful in preventing forest fires during dry spells.
The forest fire hazard is low to moderate in the region right now.
