Two major fires near the Flin Flon area are now partially controlled, but the fire burning along Amisk Lake is gaining steam.
The ALIR fire, found on the west shore of Amisk Lake opposite Denare Beach, is taking off. The blaze has climbed all the way up the lake’s west shore after starting around Muskeg Bay and is growing in three different directions. Several recent hotspots have been reported to the north and west of the fire area, with the largest reported new section of hotspots as of August 26 growing toward Highway 106. The fire is now about 10 kilometres away from the highway at its closest point, with latest hotspots found near Neagle Lake.
Part of the fire is going south past Amisk Lake to Usinne Lake, while a third area of growth is burning further up the Sturgeon Weir river.
In all, the fire has affected about 25,300 hectares of area and is still considered “not contained” by the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA).
The news isn’t all bad, however - the Hobb fire, burning south of Hanson Lake and not far from Foran Mining’s McIlvenna Bay mine project, is now listed by the SPSA as contained. The fire was a few kilometres from the mine site at its closest point. Just under 5,000 hectares of forest land was burned by the fire, but no new hotspots have been reported with the fire in several days as of August 26.
Another fire, the WE038 fire in Manitoba located near Kisseynew Lake, has also been downgraded in severity. According to Manitoba Conservation and Climate, the fire is now “being held” as of August 26, having burned just over 13,000 hectares of forest. No recent hotspots have been reported as a part of the fire.
The smaller Fitz fire is still burning north of Cotteral Lake and, as of August 26, has affected about 116 hectares of land. That fire is now considered an “ongoing assessment” by the SPSA.
Fire danger in the areas around Flin Flon, as of August 23, ranges from being low for much of northern Manitoba to medium for areas around Flin Flon, Pelican Narrows, Snow Lake and Cranberry Portage, with some Saskatchewan communities including Creighton and Denare Beach having a “high” fire danger.
Manitoba
Four fires are continuing to burn between Snow Lake and Pukatawagan, with two of them having grown to over 50,000 hectares in size.
The WE032 fire, burning north of Snow Lake, is now at almost 62,000 hectares in size, more than 60,000 of which is still considered an active site according to Natural Resources Canada. The fire, according to Manitoba Conservation and Climate, is still “out of control” as of August 26. The fire is about 30 kilometres north of Snow Lake at its closest point. Recent hotspots have been reported on the fire's west side, heading toward Sherridon.
The WE064 fire near Pukatawagan is now at almost 57,000 hectares, but activity appears to be dropping off. A total of 54,000 hectares is still considered active fire site with the blaze, growing to the southeast, toward the WE032 fire. The fire, which is about 10 km away from Pukatawagan at its closest, is still considered “out of control” by Manitoba Conservation and Climate, which characterizes their response to the blaze as “monitored”. The fire is not growing toward Pukatawagan.
A third fire, the WE049 blaze, is still burning near Highrock Lake and has burned more than 22,200 hectares of forest. While Manitoba Conservation and Climate says the fire is being “monitored”, no recent hotspots are being reported. Firefighters are using a “modified” response to the fire.
Yet another fire is burning east of Snow Lake, named the WE047 fire in provincial fire data. That fire, according to Natural Resources Canada, is now at just over 6,700 hectares in size, including 5,300 hectares of active fire site. Few recent hotspots have been found with the fire and it is being monitored, but the fire is still considered “out of control”.
