Morning News – August 4

Weather

Mainly cloudy. 40 percent chance of showers this morning with risk of a thunderstorm. Fog patches becoming local smoke this morning. Wind becoming southwest 20 km/h this afternoon. High 24. Humidex 29. UV index 6 or high.
Tonight – Cloudy. Becoming partly cloudy this evening. Local smoke. Low 17.

Special Air Quality Statement:

High levels of air pollution due to smoke from ongoing forest fires.

Smoke plumes from active fires in northwestern Ontario and eastern Manitoba will continue to spread into the area. Poor air quality and reduced visibilities are expected. Southerly winds are expected to push the smoke northward out of the area this afternoon.

 

Status of COVID-19 cases in Algoma

There one active case of COVID-19 in the Algoma District today (Sault Ste. Marie and Area).

Immunization Uptake and Coverage in Algoma (Last updated: 12:50 PM, August 3, 2021)

Doses administered to Algoma residents

Total doses administered – 156,054
# of people who are fully vaccinated – 73,160 / 63.9%

 

2021 Forest Fire Status – Northeast Forest Fire Region:

WAW12 – 0.3ha, out
WAW13 – 1.5ha, out
WAW14 – 0.2, out

Active Fires	Not Under Control	Held	Under Control	Observed
10	0		0	10

The fire hazard is low to moderate in most of the Northeast region this afternoon, except for part of the Far North and a few small pockets located near Cartier, West Nipissing and Hillsport which are all maintaining a high hazard.

 

Northwest Forest Fire Region

Active Fires	Not Under Control	Held	Under Control	Observed
109	17	4	14	74

The wildland fire hazard ranges from high to extreme in the Kenora District. A full range of conditions – from low to extreme – exists in Red Lake, Sioux Lookout, Dryden, Fort Frances, Thunder Bay and Nipigon Districts. Hazard conditions are expected to rebound quickly.

The forest fire hazard is high across most of the region with an area of moderate hazard in the central portions of Nipigon and Sioux Lookout districts.

Restricted Fire Zone boundaries updated to include Thunder Bay and portions of Nipigon and Wawa districts

Due to high to extreme forest fire hazard conditions, effective 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 10, the Ontario Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry has issued updated boundaries for a Restricted Fire Zone in the Kenora, Fort Frances, Dryden and Thunder Bay Districts and portions of the Sioux Lookout, Red Lake, Nipigon and Wawa Districts.  The Restricted Fire Zone will be in effect until further notice. Outdoor fires are banned. Portable gas stoves may still be used BUT must be handled with extreme care.

 

News Tidbits:

Very sad yesterday to see that the site WawaWeather.net has been shuttered. It provided more detailed information that has been available for years at the Environment Canada weather site at the Wawa Municipal Airport – wind gust strength, rainfall accumulations, etc. The weather records/data is also gone.

 

Algoma University has received $262,500 for their project “Shifting Indigenous Front-Line Tactics (SHIFT)”. This project, a partnership between Algoma University and the Children of Shingwauk (former residential school) Alumni Association, aims to bridge the cultural knowledge gap between public service agencies, the private sector, and Indigenous communities by encouraging an environment of greater cultural understanding towards Indigenous peoples.

 

Government Announcements:

Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, will be joined by Goldie Ghamari, MPP for Carleton, to make an announcement at 8 a.m.

Lisa MacLeod, Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, will be joined by Councillor Michael Thompson, Chair of the Economic and Community Development Committee, City of Toronto, to make an announcement about support for festivals and events across the province at 10.m.

Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, will be joined by Logan Kanapathi, MPP for Markham-Thornhill, Dr. Kieran Moore, Chief Medical Officer of Health, and Dr. Karim Kurji, Medical Officer of Health for York Region, to make an announcement at 11 a.m.