Wildfire evacuees from 2 Ontario First Nations to shelter in Toronto, Barrie

Wildfire evacuees from two First Nations in northwestern Ontario are being relocated to Toronto and Barrie, Ont., this weekend, after community leaders declared states of emergency this week.

Leaders in Deer Lake First Nation (DLFN), about 70 kilometres from the Manitoba border, said Friday the entire community of about 1,300 people are evacuating to Toronto due to a nearby wildfire estimated to be nearly 75 square kilometres in size.

In Webequie First Nation, about 540 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, Ont., a fire is burning within a kilometre of the community, according to a Friday news release put out by the chief and council. That's prompted the first phase of an evacuation for elders, children and other vulnerable groups, totalling about 400 people.

They will be transported to Barrie over the weekend, the release said.

"We will continue to monitor the fire to determine if further evacuation is needed and will continue ongoing communications with residents," Chief Cornelius Wabasse said in the release.

The fire threatening Deer Lake First Nation and several others burning in the area not yet under control and it's possible that other communities will need to be evacuated, according to Joe Tom Sayers, general manager of the Missanabie Cree Business Corporation.

Among other initiatives, the corporation specializes in First Nation-led emergency responses. It is working with government counterparts at the federal, provincial and municipal levels to bring members of Deer Lake First Nation to Toronto.

Unclear when evacuees could go home 

Sayers said the unpredictability of wildfires makes it challenging to estimate how long people may be away from their homes.

"It's very difficult to know how long the folks will be out, and it's not easy for the families. But we do our best to make them comfortable and we've had great support from the municipalities, the hotels, and the community organizations," Sayers told CBC Toronto.

"It's never easy and it's traumatic for folks."

The emergency response wing of the Missanabie Cree Business Corporation has had an especially taxing spring and early summer, he added, first with evacuations due to floods and now with wildfire season picking up.

"Usually these types of  fire threats happen later in the summer. We're seeing now with the extreme climate impacts that flood seasons are moving directly into fire seasons and it is certainly putting a lot of stress on all support networks  across the province — federal, provincial and First Nation," he said.

Another wildfire northwest of Kenora, Ont., also displaced residents of Wabaseemoong First Nation earlier this month. About 800 people in that community were evacuated to Niagara Falls, with smaller numbers sent to Kenora and Winnipeg. 

Sol Mamakwa, MPP for the region where the First Nations are located, urged the province to speed up support for evacuees and other communities being impacted by fires in the north of the province, as well as wildland firefighters.

"It is vital that wildland firefighters are adequately staffed and resourced as they are on the frontlines protecting the residents of northern Ontario," he said. 

Ontario's Ministry of Natural Resources was not immediately available to provide comment Saturday in response to Mamakwa's statement.