Coordinated effort for Kenora 51

Title photo: A B212 helicopter equipped with a belly tank releases a water drop during operation on Kenora 51, Aug. 15. Photo courtesy AFFES.

BY LEANNE FOURNIER

Kenora 51 has been described as one of the largest fires ever fought in this region. We extend an enormous thanks to those who work tirelessly to protect lives, land and property.

Chris Marchand is the Fire Information Officer for OntarioMinistry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resourcesand Forestry (NDMNRF) and Aviation, Forest Fire andEmergency Services (AFFES), the forest fire management branchof NDMNRF. He answered our questions about the monstrousblaze that had a profound impact on the summer of 2021.

Can you describe what contributed to the start and then spread of Kenora 51?

Kenora 51 was discovered on June 8, 2021, north of Eden Lake in the remote Eagle/Snowshoe Provincial Park. An investigation into the cause of Kenora 51 is ongoing. By June 11, amidst a rapidly escalating regional fire situation in Northwestern Ontario, Kenora 51 had grown to 22,252 hectares in size.

As a heat wave persisted into July, the fire continued to expand its perimeter in all directions as fire hazard and drought conditions increased to levels not seen by AFFES fire officials in 50 years. Energized by high winds, low humidity and very dry forest fuels, the extreme fire behaviour and fast rates of spread exhibited by Kenora 51 initially presented too many risks to put crews on the ground, limiting suppression options to waterbombers (CL-415) and helicopters equipped with buckets. Crews placed sprinkler systems on remote properties in the path of the fire, where it was safe and feasible to do so.

Was it just NDMNRF or were other local fire departments involved in the effort?

AFFES officials were in frequent contact with the Manitoba Wildfire Service who mounted suppression and values protection efforts as the fire crossed the provincial boundary into Manitoba. While the Kenora 51 fire area is somewhat isolated from an Ontario context, the fire was a concern to cottage subdivisions at Davidson Lake and Beresford Lake on the Manitoba side of the provincial boundary.

When did you assess the need for additional help—how did that occur?

The need for additional help from out-of-province was apparent early in the season as a growing list of problematic fires of concern to various communities was accompanied by 15 to 50 new fire starts per day throughout late June into July—fully engaging our initial attack firefighting resources.

Resource sharing between different fire management jurisdictions is a common occurrence in a busy fire season. The province has mutual aid agreements with other provinces and international partners that allow for the movement of wildland firefighting resources to where they are needed the most. For example, Ontario firefighting personnel answered Australia’s call for assistance during the winter of 2020. Mexican firefighters also came to Ontario in 2018 when the fire situation was escalated on the Northeast side of the province.

A few members of the Mexican firefighting contingent (yellow) pose with some Ontario personnel. (Please note this photo was taken at the Red Lake Fire Management Headquarters. Pictures of the Mexican personnel from Kenora 51 weren’t available).

Photo courtesy AFFES.

The Incident Command System is a widely-used fire management tool that provides a familiar structure for teams of specialized wildland fire professionals from far and away to take command of a fire incident, using a commonly accepted organizational structure and procedures.

In addition to Kenora 51, elsewhere across the region, fire officials were managing multiple problematic fires which necessitated the evacuation of over 4,000 people in seven communities including Naicatchewenin First Nation, Poplar Hill First Nation, Deer Lake First Nation, Pikangikum First Nation, North Spirit Lake First Nation, Cat Lake First Nation and the Municipality of Red Lake (evacuation alert only).

As Kenora 51 approached the north shore of Umfreville Lake, over 40 kilometres south of its origin point, Wabaseemoong became the eighth community of the 2021 fire season to evacuate its residents. Fire officials focused on preventing the fire from jumping a 1.5 kilometre gap to the south shore of Umfreville Lake, where the fire would have the potential to pose a threat to the community. Crews would establish sprinklers throughout the community to protect homes and critical infrastructure.

Thick smoke hampered aerial operations and combined with smoke from other nearby large fires, air quality was affected throughout the region and beyond.

Scattered showers in late July helped to lower fire behaviour sufficiently to put crews on the ground. A diverse cadre of firefighting personnel from Australia, Mexico, Alberta, Quebec, the Atlantic provinces and Great Lakes states joined their Ontario partners in strategic locations along the now 200,667 hectare fire’s perimeter. Of particular focus was preventing the advance of the fire towards Davidson Lake and a cottage subdivision just across the Manitoba boundary. On the east side of the fire, firefighters established hose lines at pinch points between bodies of water in the Fletcher and Rowdy Lake areas as well as areas north of Sydney Lake.

Working east of the fire, heavy equipment pushed north, building fireguard, a wide corridor of bare earth designed to halt the momentum of an advancing fire. In mid- August, heavy equipment operators completed their task, connecting their corridor of fireguard with a concurrent effort that was pushing south from Red Lake to protect that community from Red Lake 77.

Intense fire behaviour on Kenora 51 in early July.

Photo courtesy AFFES.

What was Ontario’s strategy to fight these fires this summer?

Our main focus during this escalated situation was to maintain public safety, protect private property and critical infrastructure, ensure the safety of all emergency responders, and initial attack on wildland fires. Wildland fire protection plans help us concentrate our efforts where they can lessen the threat and impacts to communities. The protection plans identify key infrastructure that is critical to the community and help prioritize efforts for community protection during a wildland fire emergency.

The overarching objectives of Ontario’s wildland fire management strategy are to:

• Prevent loss of human life and injury

• Prevent and mitigate losses including economic and social disruption

• Promote understanding of the ecological role of fire

• Use fire to benefit resource management

Were there other partners we should mention?

Ontario saw significant contributions from other partners as well in 2021, including crews from Alberta, Newfoundland, New Brunswick, PEI and Wisconsin. Quebec provided personnel as well as several water bombers this summer. There were also a large number of contractors that supported us during operations this summer including helicopter companies, fixed wing companies, basecamp service providers, contract fire crews, as well as nursing and medical services.

Fire behaviour on Kenora 51 on Aug. 3.

Photo courtesy AFFES.

Was it just water used to fight the fire?

The nature of our landscape makes water an important factor in fighting fire in the northwest in two ways: first to put water directly on the fire using pumps and hoses or aircraft, or as a natural boundary (lakes, rivers) used to contain a blaze. Other methods include fireguards— creating a wide corridor of bare earth with heavy equipment to disrupt the forest fuels ahead of a fire and halt its momentum. Ignition is another technique where, under favourable weather conditions, officials will ignite strategic sections of forest ahead of a fire to remove the fuels ahead of it, disrupt its momentum and bring it to natural boundaries.

How many firefighters were on the fire at any given time?

Approximately 200 personnel and 15 helicopters were assigned to the incident on any given day once the firefighting effort had begun in earnest.

How many days in total before the fire was considered held?

Since the fire’s discovery on June 8, 83 days passed before the fire’s status of control changed to Being Held on August 30. The definition of ‘Being Held’ according to The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre is: A wildland fire that indicates, with currently committed resources, sufficient suppression action has been taken so that the fire is not likely to spread beyond existent or predetermined control boundaries under prevailing or forecasted conditions.

Kenora 51 is not only the province’s largest fire of 2021, but also covers a land area much larger than all the fires put together that we would expect to see across the province in a usual season (based on the 10-year provincial average). The size of this fire area (200,667 hectares) naturally slows down those assessments around status of control.

Wet weather has been the dominant factor in putting the fire out, but it continues to be monitored.

Minaki was the base of operations I believe? Any words for the community, local firefighters, etc.?

We would like to thank the residents of Minaki, and the various locations involved in fire operations for being patient hosts (once again) throughout the season. At the time of writing, Kenora 51 was still an active fire, so Notices to Airmen (NOTAM) was restricting private and commercial air traffic in the fire. As well, residents were being asked to avoid venturing into areas that had recent fire activity, as this could present hazards such as falling trees as a result of root systems being compromised by fire.

A B212 helicopter heads to the lake to pick up another load of water with its bucket while fighting fire on Kenora 51, Aug. 15.

Photo courtesy AFFES.

Any final words on what we can all do to reduce risks and support firefighters to do their jobs?

Residents and camp owners in the Kenora District could certainly benefit from an increased awareness of the FireSmart program. FireSmart offers resources to help homeowners protect their properties from wildland fires with landscaping techniques and various guidelines.

You can find FireSmart information at ontario.ca/firesmart.