The Northwest Territories wildfire agency says crews began battling three new wildfires on Wednesday, adding to the more than 100 fires burning across the territory.
In a Wednesday afternoon update, NWT Fire said one new wildfire, less than one hectare in size, is burning five kilometres northwest of Yellowknife. While smoke may be visible, particularly from Fred Henne Territorial Park, it said there is no danger to the city.
The agency said a quick strike team from Alberta is actioning another new fire, labelled SS052, burning between Enterprise and Kakisa, 11 kilometres from Highway 1. A helicopter and crew have also started attacking wildfire SS051, burning 34 kilometres southeast of Fort Providence.
The new wildfires are among 184 actively burning across the NWT. That includes 82 in the North Slave, 40 in the South Slave, 24 in the Sahtu, 22 in the Dehcho, and 16 in the Beaufort Delta.
A total of 209 wildfires have burned more than 1.8 million hectares in the territory this year so far.
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NWT Fire said wildfire ZF015, which has burned at least 113,097 hectares in and near Behchokǫ̀, had moved slightly east but was not expected to progress much on Wednesday.
Wildfire SS022, which is burning 23 kilometres from Fort Smith, had not moved any closer to the town or Fort Fitzgerald in Alberta on Wednesday, according to the agency. It said cooler temperatures had improved visibility and were allowing crews to “make good progress” on the fire.
