Ontario sending personnel, equipment to N.W.T firefight
Ontario is sending people and gear to help fight fires in the Northwest Territories, where flames are edging closer to the capital.
Yellowknife, home to about 22,000 people, is under an evacuation order, as are several other nearby communities. Half of the population in the Northwest Territories has now been displaced by encroaching fire.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
Ontario's Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry says 65 firefighters, command, and support staff are being dispatched in the coming days, with some arriving in Yellowknife Friday.
The province is also sending equipment, including hoses, pump kits and batteries to power radios.
Some personnel may be shifted to battle fires in British Columbia.
The union representing some fire rangers in Ontario says the province isn't helping as much as it could.
"Ontario forest fire workers are being deployed to assist in the Northwest Territories, but the support they're able to offer is extremely limited due to short staffing," OPSEU President J.P. Hornick said in a statement.
"Our members working at Aviation Forest Fires and Emergency Services (AFFES) want to be able to support other provinces fight wildfires, but program cuts and underfunding by the Ford government has led to a retention crisis that's left us short a third of crews."
Toronto-based charity GlobalMedic is also sending help with two tank and pump systems, a little bigger than a washing machine. The 1,000-litre units can be used to snuff out flames.
"Because it fits on the back of a pickup truck, and there's a lot of pickup trucks in Yellowknife, we're able to turn any one of those pickup trucks into a fire truck," GlobalMedic's Executive Director Rahul Singh said Friday.
Singh expects the first unit to be given to Yellowknife's fire chief Friday, the second on Saturday.
"If we don't get these guys more gear to defend that city, it's gonna be pretty catastrophic what happens there."
The Canadian Red Cross is supporting Yellowknife evacuees who have ended up in Alberta. In Edmonton, the charity is connecting people with shelter, pillows, blankets, and toiletries.
You can donate to the Red Cross' efforts at redcross.ca
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Environmental racism': First Nations leaders claim cancer-causing contamination was covered up
The people of Fort Chipewyan believe the federal government believe the federal government knew its water was contaminated and hid the issue for years. Now the chief of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation is leading the call for immediate action.
Death toll from Hurricane Helene rises to 227 as grim task of recovering bodies continues
The death toll from Hurricane Helene inched up to 227 on Saturday as the grim task of recovering bodies continued more than a week after the monster storm ravaged the Southeast and killed people in six states.
Car flies into B.C. backyard, lands upside down
A driver suffered only minor injuries after going airborne in a residential neighbourhood in Maple Ridge, B.C., on Friday, the car eventually landing on its roof in someone’s backyard.
Donald Trump, Elon Musk attend rally at same Pennsylvania grounds where gunman tried to assassinate Trump
Donald Trump returned on Saturday to the Pennsylvania fairgrounds where he was nearly assassinated in July, holding a sprawling rally with thousands of supporters in a critical swing state Trump hopes to return to his column in November's election.
Tax rebate: Canadians with low to modest incomes to receive payment
Canadians who are eligible for a GST/HST tax credit can expect their final payment of the year on Friday.
'No one has $70,000 dollars lying around': Toronto condo owners facing massive special assessment
The owners of a North York condominium say they are facing a $70,000 special assessment to fix their building's parking garage. '$70,000 is a lot of money. It makes me very nervous and stressed out of nowhere for this huge debt to come in,' said Ligeng Guo.
Police ID mom, daughter killed in Old Montreal; video shows person break into building before fatal fire
Police released the identities of the mother and daughter who were killed after a fire tore through a 160-year-old building in Old Montreal on Friday.
Frequent drinking of fizzy beverages and fruit juice are linked to an increased risk of stroke: research
New data raises questions about the drinks people consume and the potential risks associated with them, according to researchers at Galway University in Ireland, in partnership with Hamilton’s McMaster University.
'I screamed in shock and horror': Family faces deadly Vancouver hit-and-run driver during sentencing
The sentencing of the man who pleaded guilty in the deadly hit-and-run in Kitsilano two years ago began on Friday.