10 new wildland fires reported in northeast region on Sunday

The number of confirmed forest fires in northeastern Ontario continues to grow, with 10 new confirmed wildland fires in the Northeast Region as of early Sunday evening, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry's firefighting division.

The status of all new fires confirmed today is not yet under control.

One of the new fires is Sault Ste. Marie 3 which started late evening on June 3 and is 2.8 hectares.

This fire is about 15 km west of Elliot Lake and 0.5 km south of Matinenda Lake, according to Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services (AFFES) for the Northeast Fire Region.

The other new fires are in the Chapleau, Hearst, Sudbury, and North Bay areas.

AFFES said at the time of its Sunday evening update there were 30 active wildland fires across the Northeast Region. Of these, 24 were not yet under control, one was being held, one was being observed, and four were under control.

Fires of note continue to be Wawa 3 near White River, which measured 6,810 hectares, and Cochrane 3 at 80 hectares.

Meanwhile, heavy smoke across much of the northern part of the province was being attributed to the fires in both Ontario and Quebec.

People who may be at risk due to age or health status were being urged to take precautions and limit their exposure to outdoor air.

You can visit www.firesmoke.ca to see smoke forecasts.  

A restricted fire zone remains in effect due to high to extreme fire hazard across the region. No burning, including for campfires, is allowed and all burning permits are suspended.

There are also restrictions on travel in the Wawa-Chapleau area. 

For more information on the travel and use restrictions, see the Implementation Order Map. 

For a closer look at fire hazard conditions, view this Interactive Map.