A fire evacuation order for Behchoko residents follows a weekend of smaller-scale evacuations for those living between kilometres 256 and 290 of Highway 3.
Those people were told to evacuate to either Behchoko or Yellowknife at the time.
In an update on Tuesday afternoon, Mike Westwick, wildfire information officer with the Department of Environment and Climate Change, said the fire was mapped at more than 63,000 hectares as of 1:30 p.m. and was burning out of control. It stood less than 2-km north of the highway, 22 km east of Behchoko and 45 km northwest of Yellowknife.
The fire is expected to jump the highway between kilometres 275 and 279, he added, and that has forced the closure of a section of the highway between kilometres 246 and 334 until further notice. One driver who contacted the Yellowknifer newsroom on Tuesday said the highway was blocked off by police near North Country Stables.
Stronger winds on Tuesday, along with dry conditions, were expected to see the fire grow, Westwick added, with the wind pushing flames westward closer toward Behchoko.
He also said the fire posed no threat to Yellowknife, but was a threat to Behchoko.
Westwick said Tuesday’s work included air tanker drops as long if visibility allowed. As of Tuesday afternoon, he indicated that drops could no longer be performed as conditions worsened. Sprinklers were also being set up on the northeast perimeter of Behchoko to wet down the area as well as possible, with protection of cabins and homes along Highway 3 continuing.
FireIce was also being implemented on what’s called values At risk (VARs) to protect structures, according to Westwick. FireIce is a gel that coats a structure to protect it from falling embers and fire.
Yellowknifer inquired with Northwestel about the vulnerability of its telephone and internet lines in the area of the fire.
“We are in close communication with NWT Fire and they are aware of the location of all telecommunication structures in the area,” said Andrew Anderson, director of communications for Northwestel. “We continue to work with them to monitor the situation very closely.”
He wouldn’t elaborate on Northwestel’s plans if any lines are damaged by fire.
There are a total of 24 firefighters battling the blaze — six crews of four each — along with an incident management team, a structure protection specialist, air tankers and four helicopters.
Westwick said there are teams of 20 extra firefighters coming in from Alaska and New Brunswick to help those already on the ground.
—With files from Jonathan Gardiner