Délı̨nę told to prepare in case of evacuation, as wildfire moves closer

Heavy winds blew a wildfire closer to Délı̨nę, N.W.T., on Sunday, causing the community to issue an evacuation notice on Monday evening. 

An update from N.W.T. Fire Monday night said the fire was about 20 kilometres southwest of the community at its closest point.

An evacuation notice means there is an increased risk of an emergency. It is for information only, but allows time for people to prepare.

Délı̨nę Got’ı̨nę government Chief Danny Gaudet told CBC on Monday night that fire officials say there’s no immediate risk to the community.

Despite that, Gaudet said the smoke was bad in the community and the winds were getting stronger.

He said they were thinking of what happened in Enterprise, N.W.T., when winds from a fire near Kakisa swept through and all but destroyed the community in 2023, and they want to be prepared.

“There’s some things that are not under our control … we can’t really determine whether or not we can get out of the community,” Gaudet said. “Our first response would be, ‘well, we’ll just go on the lake,’ but if the winds are too high and we can’t access the lake, then we got to fly out of here.”

“We don’t know what the smoke conditions would be to allow us, to allow planes, to come and get us.”

Gaudet says he’s also concerned that there may not be enough fuel in nearby Norman Wells to run water bombers if the fire gets bigger. He also said there are some cabins down the river that are near the fire, but they were still intact last time he checked.

Winds blowing up to 70 kilometres an hour were also forecast in the area on Tuesday, according to N.W.T. Fire.

Additional crews arrived in the community on Monday and structure protections “will be assessed and actioned as necessary,” an update from N.W.T. Fire read.

Related stories from around the North: 

Canada: Wildfire smoke closes Hwy 1 between Enterprise, N.W.T., and Alberta, CBC News

Finland: Red skies over Finland as Canadian wildfire smoke arrives, Yle News

Norway: Smoke from Canadian wildfires forecast to reach Norway, The Associated Press

Russia: Kola wildfire smoke drift into Nordic neighbours, The Independent Barents Observer

Sweden: High risk of wildfires in many parts of Sweden, including North, Radio Sweden

United States: Wildfires in Anchorage? Climate change sparks disaster fears, The Associated Press