Hwy 3 fire again threatens cellphone, internet to Yellowknife

Forest fires closed N.W.T. Highway 3 again Friday afternoon, and they arealso once againthreatening telecommunications service to Yellowknife.

Highway 3 is closed betweenBehchokoand Fort Providence atkilometres108 to114.

JosephParschposted this video of a drive along Highway 3 shortly before the road was closed:

(Click here to view on mobile.)

Northwestelsays one of the fires near Highway 3 is burning right on top of its fibre optics line tothe capital.

So far there's no damage, but the company says it is keeping an eye on it and making plans to re-route phone and internet services if need be.

"There is some concern there that if the fire does burn hot enough or burn long enough that it could damage that equipment," said Northwestel spokesperson Eric Clement.

"So at this point, there isn't an imminent risk, but we are taking precautions, and we are keeping an eye on things."

Clement says technicians have covered aboveground equipment with sand and gravel to protect it from the flames.

He says if the line is damaged, the company will redirect bandwidth from elsewhere so that Yellowknife customers don't lose service entirely, but he warns that internet and phone connections could be slow.

The N.W.T. Department of Environment and Natural Resources reportedtwo newfires Friday. It says one northeast of Yellowknifeis of concern.

"There is a fire that started near Pensive Lake, about 58 clicks northeast of Yellowknife," said spokespersonJudyMcLinton.

"We do have two crews in there that areinitialattacking it. They are working that fire."

McLintonsays if the fire were to grow it could pose a threat to Highway 4, also known as theIngrahamTrail.

The other new fire is northeast ofLutselk'e andMcLintonsays it poses norisk to the community.