Two fires near Fort Smith were confirmed over the weekend, marking the first and second such ones in the territory for 2024.
One fire, designated SS001, is approximately two hectares in size and is located 21 km northwest of Fort Smith near the Slave River. SS002 is smaller than one hectare and is located 38 km north-northwest of Fort Smith on the far side of the Slave River.
Both fires did not pose any threat to nearby communities, cabins, or infrastructure, said a spokesperson with the Department of Environment and Climate Change (ECC).
“Two crews and a helicopter are taking action to put out deep-burning hotspots by removing dangerous trees, digging up the soil to expose where the heat is trapped, and dousing these areas with water,” said Mike Westwick, wildfire prevention and mitigation manager with ECC.
He added that the fires have not grown and the department will continue to work on them in the coming days.
Though no timeline was provided for when these fires will be extinguished, Westwick is confident that they will be put out.
“We’ve got a good handle on this,” he said. “It’s exactly why we went ahead with these scanning missions: to start on the front foot as the season gets underway.”