Wildfire evacuation order west of Sudbury, Ont., expands, highway closed
A wildfire west of Sudbury, Ont., has quadrupled in size prompting evacuation orders to be expanded and one highway to close.
More than 57 kilometres of Highway 810 are closed between Highway 553 and Ritchie Falls as forest fire Sudbury 17 reached 4,211 hectares (ha) in size Wednesday evening.
Facing evacuations due to a forest fire or flood? Here's what to pack in a grab-and-go bag
Here's what you need to do before you leave your house in a forest fire-prompted evacuation
The fire that started Sunday is located north of Madaweson Lake --between the highway and Mississagi Provincial Park -- and is still not under control. It is about 55 km north of the community of Massey, which is about 96 km west of Greater Sudbury.
Wednesday evening, the evacuation area was expanded to the townships of Olinyk, Plourde (south half), Prescott, Redden (west half), Strain, Teasdale, Poncet, Lehman, Lockeyer, Gerow and Gaiashik.
"Specifically, all travel and use of Highway 553 (also known as the Massey Tote Rd) south of Cameron Creek at UTM Zone 17 E 408201 N 5136071, as outlined on the attached Implementation Order map within the EAO," the Ministry of Natural Resources Forestry said.
"All travel and use of Pecors Rd at the Joubin, Gaiashik Township boundary at UTM Zone 17 E 389417 N 5136617, as outlined on the attached Implementation Order map within the EAO. All persons are prohibited from entering the area indicated on the attached map unless authorized by a travel permit issued by the MNRF."
Derrick Luetchford is the person to contact with questions about the evacuation notice. Luetchford can be reached by email at derrick.luetchford@ontario.ca or (705) 929-4166 by phone.
This is in addition to the Highway 810 area north of the 17-mile crossover and south of Ritchie Falls.
The travel use and access restrictions in that area have also expanded east of Highway 810.
- Wildfire smoke causing poor air quality in the north
- Can face masks help protect you from wildfire smoke? Health expert explains
- Northern Ont. communities evacuating due to spreading wildfires
FIRE STATISTICS
In the last 24 hours, there have been seven new wildfires in northern Ontario – two in the northeast and five in the northwest.
One fire of note is Kirkland Lake 5, which is located eight km north of Lady Evelyn Smoothwater and 10 km south of Highway 65, started around 3:20 p.m. Wednesday and grew to 500 ha in just a few hours.
As of Thursday morning, there are 56 active wildfires in northern Ontario – 34 in the northeast and 22 in the northwest. Of those, 27 are not under control.
Four of the largest forest fires in the northeast -- Wawa 3, Cochrane 6 and 7 and Timmins 7 -- have not grown in size, but are not yet under control.
Chapleau 3 more than doubled Wednesday to 1,531 ha and Sudbury 10 more than tripled Wednesday to 403 ha.
As of Wednesday, there have been a total of 189 wildfires in the region since April 12 and 133 have been extinguished. A total of 42,041 ha have been burned as a result.
CTVNewsNorthernOntario.ca will continue to have daily and breaking news updates as the forest fire situation continues.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.