Forest fire burning near Pickle Lake now under control: MNRF

A forest fire burning near the northern Ontario town of Pickle Lake is now listed as being under control, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry said.

Sioux Lookout 8 broke out on June 6, and while it didn't prompt an evacuation of Pickle Lake, nor a state of emergency, the fire was burning only a few kilometres from the town.

But the MNRF changed the status of the fire on Monday, fire information officer Shayne McCool said.

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"That fire's now listed as under control, at 824 hectares," McCool said. "So that's good news for that fire."

McCool said a larger fire burning near Pikangikum First Nation is also under control, at just 3,800 hectares.

12 active fires

The Pikangikumfire, known as Red Lake 14, did cause the evacuation of the remote, fly-in community, however, residents have since been cleared to return home.

"Crews are looking for hotspots that are identified through infra-red scans," McCool said of current firefighting efforts.

Red Lake 17, meanwhile, burning northeast of Trout Lake, is listed as being held, he said. The fire is about 6,500 hectares in size, and crews are working on it.

McCool said there were 12 active fires in the northwest on Monday. None of them were expected to threaten any communities.