Fort Simpson issues re-entry plan, no dates, as hope builds for return

The Village of Fort Simpson published its re-entry plan on Wednesday, a document that contained no firm dates but established the sequence by which residents will eventually come home after a wildfire.

If firefighters can navigate the next few days of 30C heat, community leaders are hopeful the village might soon be in a position to welcome residents home.

Fort Simpson and Wrigley, to the northwest, have been under evacuation orders since the end of June because of separate wildfires.

On Wednesday, Chief Kele Antoine of the Fort Simpson-based Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ First Nation said he saw reason to hope that residents could start coming home as soon as next week, though he was careful to note nothing is decided and a lot rides on the coming 48 hours.

“Temperatures are expected to reach 30C or higher and the winds are forecast to increase over the next two days. Those conditions could cause remaining hotspots to flare up, which is why crews continue to monitor them so closely,” Chief Antoine wrote on Wednesday afternoon.

“If everything goes well over the next couple of days, and we don’t see any major flare-ups because of the hot and windy weather, I’m hopeful we could see a return to the community as early as Monday. Please understand that this is not official and could change depending on conditions.”

The Village of Fort Simpson issued its re-entry plan later in the day. The plan sets out how the village will bring back essential personnel then proceed with a flight back from Yellowknife for those evacuees who need it. It also lists the hazards that will remain and a checklist of things residents should do on their return.

In a phone call on Wednesday, Nahendeh MLA Shane Thompson – who is not directly involved in emergency management but has been helping evacuees with issues like receiving financial assistance – said he understood stores were starting to work on bringing essential staff back.

“I greatly appreciate people’s patience. I understand their frustrations but most people, I would say, have been really, really good at adapting to the situation we’re in,” Thompson told Cabin Radio, noting many Fort Simpson residents are veterans of a flood-related evacuation five years ago.

“Our essential workers need to get back into the community before we can actually get in there,” Thompson said.

“When they open the doors, they want to be able to have the services that people need – like the stores have food and staff there, the health centre is ready and operational.”

Antoine noted any return of essential personnel requires approval and coordination from the emergency management team before it can take place.