Here's the latest on northwestern Ontario's forest fires: Friday, Aug. 21

There are 69 active wildfires in northwestern Ontario, according to the latest report issued Thursday night from Ontario's Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services (AFFES).

Of those, seven are not under control, three are being held, 11 are under control and the rest are being observed.

The province said as of Thursday evening, one new fire had been confirmed in the northwest:

• Thunder Bay 84 (THU084) is located near the northeast end of Loganberry Lake, approximately 1 kilometre northwest of Holly Lake. The 0.2 hectare fire is under control.

The forest fire hazard is mostly low to moderate across northwestern Ontario, with pockets of high hazard throughout the region.

Fires of note in the region

• The Rinker Complex: Made up of Thunder Bay 36, Dryden 34 and Dryden 35 — remains one of the largest firefighting operations in the region. Thunder Bay 36 is 301,240 hectares, Dryden 34 is 45,800 hectares and Dryden 35 is 30,201 hectares. All three fires remain not under control. An evacuation order remains in place for areas affected by all three fires. Fire activity remains low, and in its update on Sunday AFFES stated that FireRanger crews were making "excellent progress" in extinguishing hotspots.
• Atikokan Cluster: Fort Frances 13, 14 and 15. The fires measure 25,313 hectares, 51,768 hectares and 42,273 hectares, respectively. Fort Frances 13 is now listed as being observed while Fort Frances 14 and 15 are listed as not under control. Travel restrictions have been lifted for Fort Frances 14 and 15, although those returning to the areas are asked to stay clear of active firefighting operations. In its update on Monday, AFFES said over 100 fire personnel are assigned to the cluster of fires, including some firefighters from Mexico. It said fire behaviour has been low, and that recent rainfall has been helpful.

In a post on the Ontario Forest Fires Facebook page on Tuesday, the province also noted that a group of fires known as the Highway 599 cluster is now under control. The cluster includes Sioux Lookout 84, Sioux Lookout 86 and Sioux Lookout 89, which are located southwest of Mishkeegogamang First Nation.

Evacuees returning home

As of Friday, all wildfire evacuees from the following communities had returned home, according to Prepared Ontario:

• Eabametoong First Nation.
• Gull Bay First Nation.
• Lac Des Mille Lacs First Nation.
• Lac La Croix First Nation.

"Thank you host communities of Fort Frances, Kenora, Niagara Falls and Thunder Bay for helping to #ProtectOntario," the province wrote on Facebook.

Evacuation, implementation orders

The evacuation alerts in effect for Fort Frances 39 and Minnesota’s "Thumb Fire" have been lifted.

"Wildland fire suppression activities are ongoing [for] this fire, but public safety relating to this fire is no longer a concern. Residents and visitors should continue to remain aware of local conditions and follow any direction provided by local authorities or emergency officials," Ontario Forest Fires' website says.

• What to know as burn bans, evacuation orders are set to be lifted in northern Ontario

• What to know about preparing go bags and emergency kits

A restricted fire zone in northwestern Ontario and a small portion of the northeast was officially revoked as of 12:01 a.m. ET on Thursday.

As well, the province is lifting the implementation and evacuation orders around Thunder Bay 36 and 56, and Dryden 34 and 35, effective 9 a.m. on Thursday.

Those under evacuation orders are required to leave the area, while those under evacuation alerts are urged to prepare to evacuate. Implementation orders indicate travel restrictions in certain areas.

Property damage assessments

As part of a press conference last week in which provincial officials gave updates on the wildfire situation, Ontario's natural resources minister said that as the fire situation improves, some early assessments of property damage in areas of the northwest are also now underway.

"My ministry is also conducting assessment flights to document property damage and loss. Impacted property owners can contact 211 to receive information from our ministry staff and support on the next steps," said Mike Harris, Minister of Natural Resources.

He said that the ministry is also currently working closely with Namaygoosisagagun First Nation to restore the road back to the landing on the lake, which goes into the community, and ministry engineers are doing some work on its first bridge to try and expedite construction.

The ministry is also working with camps, tourist operators and similar stakeholders to try and get them back to assess damages, Harris added.

Notice to Air Missions, or NOTAMs, remain in effect for Thunder Bay 36 and Fort Frances 14.

Highways re-opened

According to the province's interactive highway map, road closures along Highway 527 and Highway 811 have now been lifted.

On Wednesday, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) advised that there would be an increased police presence on Highway 527 as they assist with the return of residents to Armstrong and Whitesand First Nation, following the province's decision to lift the evacuation and implementation orders that had been in place for those communities.

Throughout the fire season, the OPP have urged people for their safety and the safety of emergency responders to:

• Stay away from affected areas and refrain from attending wildfire scenes to take photos or videos.
• Remain calm and follow all evacuation orders and emergency instructions issued by local authorities.
• Avoid non-essential travel in affected areas.
• Monitor official sources for the latest information and evacuation updates.
• Remain away from evacuated areas until authorities have advised it is safe to return.
• Help keep roadways clear so emergency personnel can carry out their work safely and effectively.
• If evacuating, bring essential medications, identification, important documents, mobile devices and chargers and any items required to support family members and pets.

Canada Post red delivery service alerts

Mail delivery has been suspended in the following communities due to wildfire activity:

• Gull Bay.
• Collins.

No new fires in the northeast

No new fires were confirmed in the northeast as of Thursday evening:

There are currently 41 active wildland fires in the northeast Region. Of these fires: one is being held, one is under control and 39 are being observed.

Forest fire danger ratings are primarily low across northeastern Ontario, with some pockets of moderate hazard in the southwest, south of Greater Sudbury and around North Bay.

Aid against forest fires

The ministry said earlier this summer it is providing an additional $650 million to purchase six new waterbombers and five new helicopters.

It has also added 170 new permanent fire personnel positions, including crew lead roles, and increased compensation for staff, including firefighters and pilots.

The ministry will conduct an after-action review of its wildfire response to inform improvements in planning and response.

• More than 80 wildfires extinguished in Ontario in past 2 weeks: minister

There have also been four Ontario Corps partners and 17 Ontario Corps volunteers sent to help. In addition to reception centres set up in Thunder Bay and Dryden, the province said the following equipment/supplies have been provided:

• 312 air purifiers.
• 84 replacement air filters.
• Five air scrubbers.
• 7,040 N-95 masks.
• 4,676 hygiene kits.
• 80 food hampers.

Air purifiers, air scrubbers and replacement filters, in particular, were sent to five First Nations, allowing them to remain in their communities.

As part of these efforts, Feed Ontario and the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres are also shipping and distributing food to evacuees.

In addition, the Kaministiquia and Upsala fire departments were among some regional fire services to receive wildland fire skids from GlobalMedic.