Sandy Lake members 'pulling together' as wildfire evacuation continues: chief

Another northwestern Ontario First Nation is being evacuated, arsenic a large wildfire burns nearby.

An evacuation bid for Sandy Lake First Nation was issued connected Saturday arsenic Red Lake 12 burned little than 2 kilometres distant from the distant Oji-Cree community.

The occurrence was initially reported connected May 28. In an email to CBC News connected Sunday, Chris Marchand of Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services said the occurrence "experienced important maturation connected June 6 and 7," and is present much than 156,000 hectares successful size.

"We're pulling together," Sandy Lake Chief Delores Kakegamic told CBC News connected Sunday. "It's a batch of work."

"We person teams doing … everything from information to the rangers helping astatine the airport," she said. "Everybody's doing their part."

In an update issued Sunday, the assemblage said it was nether a signifier 1 evacuation, focusing connected its astir susceptible residents and their families.

Nine flights near the assemblage connected Sunday, and much than 1,000 radical person near the community, not including those who made idiosyncratic arrangements to leave.

The adjacent measurement could beryllium to proceed with older children and their families, though galore person left, the update says. Another update is expected connected Monday.

Thunder Bay acceptable up arsenic evacuation hub

The City of Thunder Bay, meanwhile, won't beryllium hosting immoderate evacuees, but is acting arsenic an evacuation hub, Deputy Fire Chief Dave Tarini said.

That means, helium said, portion Thunder Bay won't beryllium hosting immoderate Sandy Lake members long-term, immoderate are staying successful the metropolis briefly.

"Most of the clip … there's a a backstage institution that's been contracted by the provincial authorities to tally the proscription hub, and that's done close retired the (Thunder Bay International Airport), truthful they are accommodated and taken attraction of portion they're waiting successful transit," helium said.

"Otherwise, we volition look to immoderate of our country hotels successful bid to find abstraction and capableness to location folks overnight, depending connected however dire the concern gets."

"If it is an emergency, a dire exigency arsenic they said, we could look astatine putting them successful much of a congregate mounting conscionable to get them retired of the assemblage distant from the contiguous danger, and that would impact trying to escaped up abstraction astatine assemblage centres, arenas, wherever we tin safely location folks," Tarini said.

"We haven't gotten to that constituent yet. Currently betwixt the Thunder Bay airdrome and a mates of the section hotels, we're capable to to negociate the the volume."

On the weekend, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that the Canadian Armed Forces would assistance successful evacuating Sandy Lake.

Crew members caught successful the fire

Speaking astatine the Thunder Bay airdrome aft arriving successful the city, Sandy Lake member Troy Kakepetum said helium and his household were flown retired of the community connected Sunday.

"It was truly smoky there, scary," helium said. "This is my archetypal clip being progressive successful an evacuation."

Kakepetum said helium and his household were initially transported to Red Lake, past to Thunder Bay. They were past scheduled to beryllium flown to Ottawa.

"I took 1 of my co-workers to his camp, helium stays astatine the camp, astatine the Valard camp," Kakepetum said. "We went to spell prime up his stuff, and soon after, the occurrence came there, and immoderate of the unit members, they were caught."

"They hid themselves successful a oversea can."

Kirk Hinrichs was 1 of the workers who was caught successful the fire.

"I woke up successful aboriginal successful the morning, I looked up and each I spot is simply a large unreality of smoke, and looked astatine the radar," helium told CBC News connected Sunday. "Fifteen miles away, it said."

"Three hours later, the occurrence is close there, close retired the door. The upwind was picking up truly bad, and each of a abrupt determination is similar 100-foot flames."

He said it was precise hard to spot due to the fact that of the heavy smoke.

"There was a telephone for each of america to spell into the containers, which I thought was a truly silly idea, but we did extremity up going successful a container," helium said. "It was becoming excessively overmuch and the instrumentality caught fire, truthful we each had to permission there."

The unit ended up heading into 1 of the campers.

"Helicopters couldn't scope america due to the fact that there's debased visibility," Hinrichs said. "So we fundamentally conscionable had to hold for the occurrence to pain and thrust out."

"We were conscionable mostly waiting for the occurrence connected the roadworthy to to spell away," helium said. "We got an unfastened model to get retired of there, truthful we took it."

The unit works for Sigfusson Northern. The institution issued a media merchandise connected Sunday saying each 14 members of its crew — as good arsenic 4 different workers employed by different organizations moving adjacent Sandy Lake — are safe.

"At the clip enactment began successful Sandy Lake First Nation connected Saturday, June 7, determination was nary evacuation bid successful place," the media merchandise states. "Out of an abundance of caution, we initiated craft evacuation plans aboriginal that morning."

"Unfortunately, those efforts had to beryllium paused erstwhile the runway became inaccessible owed to occurrence activity. Thankfully, arsenic upwind conditions improved aboriginal successful the day, our aviation squad was capable to safely scope and airlift our workers and our spouse organization's unit to safety."

The institution said it's providing entree to counselling and wellness services to those affected by the incident.

Fire suppression, different evacuations continue

In his email, Marchand said aerial suppression of Red Lake 12 volition proceed arsenic fume conditions allow, with helicopters and 11 FireRanger crews moving to suppress the occurrence and support structures.

Deer Lake First Nation evacuated its members to Toronto past week owed to the Red Lake 12 fire, and Marchand said Keewaywin First Nation is expected to statesman an evacuation this week. North Spirit Lake First Nation besides declared a authorities of exigency connected Sunday and called for a implicit assemblage evacuation.

Webequie First Nation has evacuated its astir susceptible members to Barrie owed to the Nipigon 5 fire, which is burning conscionable southbound of the community. As of Monday morning, the occurrence was astir 8,880 hectares successful size, and not nether control.

"Wet upwind crossed the portion is expected to proceed implicit the adjacent respective days, which should bounds occurrence behaviour to varying degrees and assistance our efforts," Marchand wrote.

Meanwhile, members of Wabaseemoong Independent Nations, who person been staying successful Niagara Falls since mid-May owed to an evacuation order, person been cleared to instrumentality home, the assemblage posted successful an update Friday.