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A wildfire last reported to be 30 km from Sambaa K’e has local leaders telling residents to prepare in case the situation worsens.
Naturally caused fire FS002 was measured at 500 hectares in size on Friday morning and is classified as out of control according to NWT Fire.
Sambaa K’e is not currently at risk from the fire, though with lots of smoke in the air, community leaders spent Thursday evening canvassing the community to inform residents of the situation and encourage them to make an emergency plan and kit. (This is something the territorial government encourages everyone to do, even if there is no imminent emergency.)
As of 4pm on Friday, multiple authorities said no evacuation alert had been issued. The territorial government said it had not received a request for such an alert to be implemented.
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If the community is told to evacuate, residents will be hosted in Fort Simpson.
Sambaa K’e First Nation has been approached for comment.
The GNWT said it will share formal evacuation notices, alerts, and orders on its website. They are part of a three-level system related to evacuations in the NWT:
- Level 1 – Evacuation Notice: To advise you that an emergency event, such as a wildfire or flood, may present an increased risk to your community and could endanger life or property.
- Level 2 – Evacuation Alert: Get ready to leave on short notice.
- Level 3 – Evacuation Order: Leave as soon as possible.
Fire FS002 may grow throughout the day, wildfire information officer Thomas Bentham said on Friday morning.
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“We’re going to see more of a pickup of fire activity during this windy weather,” he told Cabin Radio. “It’s ripe for fire activity but we have crews actioning it, and they’re doing their best to limit the growth.”
“There are significant protective elements in Sambaa K’e’s favour. The burned area to the south of Trout Lake and to the east of the fire is quite significant. It burned in 2023, and burned with great intensity, leaving much less fuel for the fire to work with. Additionally, a considerable area surrounding the community of Sambaa K’e, located immediately to the south of the community, was burned off in 2023, providing an extra degree of protection,” said Jay Boast, the GNWT’s Emergency Management Organization information officer.
While the government is planning for risk posed by unburnt forest near the south arm of Trout Lake, Boast said, “We want to reiterate that we do not assess this fire as a threat to the community of Sambaa K’e.”
Water bombers and helicopters are helping crews fight the fire. Crews are also putting sprinkler systems on infrastructure away from the community such as cabins.
There are currently four active fires in the Dehcho region, and eight across the NWT in total.
