Wawa-news.com Local and Regional News
Jul 16, 2026 at 21:21
Updated: July 16, 2026 at 6:47 p.m. Central Daylight Time (CDT)
A total of 5 new wildland fires were discovered in the Northwest Region by the evening of July 16.
- Nipigon 63 (NIP063) is located near the northwest end of Onaman Lake. The 0.1-hectare fire is not under control.
- Nipigon 64 (NIP064) is located approximately 7.3 kilometers northeast of Jobrin Lake. The 4.0-hectare fire is not under control.
- Nipigon 65 (NIP065) is located approximately 9 kilometers northeast of Kagianagami Lake. The 4.0-hectare fire is not under control.
- Nipigon 66 (NIP066) is located approximately 9.3 kilometers south of Highway 11, and southeast of Gort Lake. The 0.1-hectare fire is not under control.
- Kenora 18 (KEN018) is located on an island, at the north end of Lake of the Woods. The 0.1-hectare fire is not under control.
At the time of this update there are 129 active wildland fires in the Northwest Region. Of those fires, 62 are not under control, 5 fires are being held, 4 fires are under control 58 fires are being observed.
To access the current forest fire danger rating in your area visit our interactive fire map.
Fires of note
Dryden 13 (DRY013) and several Thunder Bay fires have merged with Thunder Bay 36 (THU036). The large fire located in Wabakimi will be referred to as Thunder Bay 36 (THU036).
Fort Frances 14 (FOR014) and Fort Frances 15 (FOR015)
- Presently the FOR 014 fire is sized at 55,106 hectares and is not under control.
- The northern perimeter of FOR 014 is estimated to be approximately 5 kilometres southwest of the Trans-Canada Hwy. at its closest point.
- The southern perimeter of FOR 14 extends as far south as Fork Lake, approximately 6 kilometres north of Hwy. 11.
- Both fires exhibited significantly less growth overnight than in previous days. Cloud cover supporting higher relative humidity and lower wind speeds have temporarily reduced fire behaviour, though fire hazard conditions remain high in the area.
- Poor visibility, due to smoke is limiting flight operations in the fire area.
Among the areas where fires saw significant growth on July 13 and 14 include:
- Namaygoosisagagun First Nation (Collins)/Armstrong/Whitesands FN (Wildland Fire Dryden 13)
- McDowell First Nation (Wildland Fire Red Lake 23)
- Quetico Provincial Park/ Atikokan area (Wildland Fire Fort Frances 15 and Wildland Fire Fort Frances 38)
- Gakijiwanong Anishinaabe Nation (Wildland Fire Fort Frances 39 and Minnesota’s ‘Thumb Fire’)
- Lac Des Mille Lacs/Upsala area (Wildland Fire Fort Frances 14)
- Mishkeegogamang First Nation (multiple fires)
- Wabakimi Provincial Park (multiple merged fires)
- Cat Lake (multiple fires)
- Fort Hope (Nipigon 36 and Nipigon 58)
The fire hazard is expected to remain high to extreme across the region over the next few days. Hot, dry, and windy conditions are forecast throughout Northwestern Ontario and may contribute to increased fire behaviour and fire intensity on existing fires.
Our focus continues to be on priority areas where fire suppression efforts are most likely to be successful, with top priorities being the protection of wildland firefighting personnel and public safety, critical infrastructure, and capturing, where possible, new fires.
The types of wildland fires we are seeing on the landscape, either large in size or close to communities or other important structures or resources, require the full deployment of our available resources.
Fire operations are focused on the protection of life, property and infrastructure as elevated burning conditions and high wind conditions persist.
- Air Quality – Orange Alert - July 17, 2026
- Ontario Forest Fires – July 17 - July 17, 2026
- Northeast Forest Fire Update – July 16 - July 16, 2026
