Two cabins have been damaged by Hay River/Kakisa Wildfire SS052.
An update was released by NWT Fire at 8 p.m.
“North winds today (Saturday) improved visibility and put less pressure on fire perimeter closest to populated areas,” wrote wildfire information officer Mike Westwick. “Tomorrow (Sunday), temperatures expected to again climb to 30 degrees with south-southwesterly winds, 15km/h gusting to 30km/h, expected to shift to southwesterly at 15km/h gusting up to 35-40km/h, and extremely dry conditions. This may cause severe fire activity, and would support growth to the north, and to the east – which may be a risk for growth from the fire’s perimeter to the west of the river. Firefighting efforts will be focused on addressing these risks. Visibility may be challenging tomorrow – crew and pilot safety is number one.”
Hay River/Kakisa Wildfire SS052 is now encompasses 399,407 hectares. More than 200 personnel, 10 helicopters, 21 pieces of heavy equipment and airtankers are assigned to combatting it. It remains 1 km west of the airport Hay River and 1.5 km west of town centre, 3 km east of River Woods Estates, 7 km south of K’atl’odeeche First Nation Reserve, 3 km west and 6 km south of Delancy Estates, within 1 km west of West Point First Nation and 12 km southeast of Kakisa. It has reached Patterson Road and Paradise Garden, damaging structures there. Two cabins have been lost on the Shores of Great Slave Lake, along with a travel trailer.
“Helicopters and nine airtankers worked aggressively on the northern perimeter of the fire to reduce fire intensity and slow growth today, while preparing for a potentially challenging day tomorrow,” wrote Westwick. “Crews continued their direct attack along the northwestern portion of the fire – focusing on the perimeter to the west of the Hay River to prepare for potentially challenging conditions tomorrow.”
Hay River has undergone further evacuation as wildfires have moved closer to the town in the last three days.