Firefighters continue to tackle a pair of out-of-control wildfires on the outskirts of Fort Simpson, N.W.T., as the community’s roughly 1,300 residents have been ordered to evacuate to Yellowknife.
The Village of Fort Simpson issued the evacuation order at 7:10 p.m. MT on Sunday.
Residents had previously been told to prepare for evacuation on Friday evening, after a fire designated FS016 was discovered less than 10 kilometres west of the local airport.
The fire has grown significantly since, roughly tripling in size since yesterday at 1 p.m., according to Forrest Tower, a wildfire information officer. It’s now estimated at more than 1,000 hectares in size.
Fortunately, that growth has been mostly to the northwest, away from the community.
Les Wright, mayor of Fort Simpson, told CBC’s The Trailbreaker Monday morning that conditions had improved somewhat, but that the weather was expected to change for the worse.
“The winds are working in our favour right now, but they’re supposed to change later today,” he said.
Tower said he expects winds to shift toward the town in the late afternoon.
“There is a long strip of fire that has the potential … where we could see fire growth toward the community,” he said. “That’s really what we’re preparing for right now.”
Another fire, FS014, is burning near Highway 1, the only route out of the community.
Eight air tankers, several helicopters and more than 50 wildland firefighters are “responding aggressively,” according to an update from fire officials. That includes proactive protection of structures in the Wild Rose area, most at risk from the fire.
First evacuees arrive
Residents began to trickle into the Yellowknife Multiplex overnight, where registration is now open for evacuees.
The city is more than 600 kilometres from Fort Simpson, a roughly seven-hour drive. It’s connected to the highway system by a ferry, which operated for 24 hours to get residents out.
“There were some three-or four-hour waits,” Wright said.
Overall, Wright said, the evacuation “went very smoothly.”
“I was expecting some kind of chaos,” he said. “I think with the couple of days that people had to get ready, and the alert, they were expecting it to come.”
Milan K. Lalu drove from Fort Simpson overnight after shutting down his restaurant, which had been providing food to firefighters. It’s his first year living in the community.
“It was so hard for me,” he said. “I was so panicked at first. There were so many notices that came … I had to … just pack things and get away.”
Clayton Guinn, another evacuee, arrived on one of several flights that departed the community overnight, filled with kids and elderly residents who needed extra assistance to get out.
Guinn said the night was difficult — but he was confident he would be home soon.
“Fire crews are pretty good in Fort Simpson,” he said. “They get the job done pretty quickly.”
Registered evacuees are given wristbands that provide access to reception centre services, “including cots, meals, and showers,” according to the city.
Many government offices in Fort Simpson were closed Monday as staff evacuated the community.
A release from the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority said the Fort Simpson Health Centre is offering emergency on-call services only.
The local child and family services offices are also closed, and community mental health services and home care services are suspended until further notice.
According to Wright, no more flights will be leaving the community, and the ferry will no longer be running on 24 hour service by the end of today.
Trailers are not being permitted on the ferry to ensure it has adequate capacity. Evacuees are told to pack light.
“There will be no guarantee any stores will be available for residents,” an overnight statement from the incident command team read. All supplies will be reserved for emergency personnel, and power and water services will likely be disrupted, it said. “If you remain in town there will be no support.”
Still, not everyone has left the town. Some residents “are staying back to help protect their property,” Wright said.
“I believe in that, if you have the means to protect your property,” he said. “But if it becomes a danger to themselves, they should get into town or to the evac[uation point].”
Officials say smoke from those fires may be visible in Hay River and Enterprise.
There are currently more than 80 fires burning across the territory. Hot, dry conditions and persistent droughts have made wildfires larger and less predictable in recent years.
