Rash of fires sparked

There were 15 new fires reported by late yesterday afternoon in the Northwest Region—and more reports were being investigated as the evening progressed.
There were 10 new fires reported by day’s end Wednesday, including three in Nipigon District, one in Red Lake District, and six in Sioux Lookout District.

Nine other fires were declared “out” that day.
Many of the new fires were the direct result of lightning strikes, but there also were human-caused blazes being reported, including one in Kenora District.
Rain is in the forecast, which will help ease the forest fire hazard in some locations, depending on the rainfall.
However, lightning continues to be a concern—with some fires showing up being attributed to strikes tracked by the locator system more than a week ago.
Forest fire hazards are expected to vary in the next few days due to the rain.
But despite this forecast, there also are predictions of ongoing “high” to “extreme” hazards in areas that do not receive rain.