RED LAKE — Red Lake 12 is the largest fire on record in Ontario
The wildfire measured 194,127 hectares and remained uncontrolled, according to an interview Friday with a Ministry of Natural Resources spokesperson.
The massive fire prompted the evacuations of two First Nations, Sandy Lake and Deer Lake, about 65 kilometres apart.
As of Friday afternoon, it had 28 firefighting crews assigned to it said Alison Bezubiak, the region’s fire information officer for Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services. Type 1 incident management teams have also managed the fire since Thursday.
The crews were supported by 18 helicopters, including four heavy helicopters with increased bucketing capacity.
“They are patrolling for smokes and hotspots through the southern and eastern sections of the fire,” said Bezibiak.
The fire is a close contender in size to 2021's Kenora 51, which was over 200,000 hectares.
However, that fire was burning in both Ontario and Manitoba, Bezubiak said.
“Since Kenora 51 was burning in two provinces, the total size within Ontario was smaller than Red Lake 12,” said Bezubiak.
More rainfall is expected in the area over the weekend into Tuesday.
