'How do we get out of here?': Forest fire prompts Pickle Lake to examine second access route

An official with the Township of Pickle Lake, about 550 kilometres northwest of Thunder Bay, Ont., says the municipality is looking at building an escape route after a swiftly moving forest fire crossed the only road into, and out of the community on June 6.

The first call about the fire arrived at 2:20 p.m. on June 6. By 3 p.m. a township employeecould see smoke coming from behind the cemetery on the north side of Pickle Lake Road, which is the access road to Highway 599, said Jamie Hussey, the town's clerk treasurer.

"When the fire crossed over Pickle Lake Road, there was that sheer moment of panic that people were experiencing with 'How are we going to get out if we need to?'. It really brought to mind the conversation going on in council chambers to get the community a second access road out."

No 911 service

The fire moved so quickly Hussey's call to their local emergency dispatch number never went through.

"We don't have 911 service this far north. We actually have a local phone number that we dial and it puts us through to Kenora dispatch for EMS and fire services," she said.

The attempt to dispatch local fire services was unsuccessful "because very shortly after I put that phone call in, the phone lines went down and it takes a few minutes for that backup system to kick in for the dispatch so nobody was actually dispatched to the fire. It was just word of mouth for firefighters when they started attending to get to the hall."

The initial attack on the fire was conducted by those volunteers, including Hussey, a former volunteer firefighter.

"Quite normally a clerk-treasurer doesn't attend to a fire, but I requested permission [of the mayor] to do so, just because we were fairly short-staffed."

Volunteer efforts saved home, CBC transmitter destroyed

Word arrived soon after that two Ministry of Natural Resourceswaterbombers were on their way and a local MNRFfire crew was on the ground with their pumper truck.

OPP officers, and municipal workers started putting up road barricades, and a local man volunteered to drive the pumper truck to a home in the path of flames.

"Had he not done that, honestly I believe we would have lost their home that day, because it was a matter of minutes that could have made a difference, " said Hussey.

The fire did knock out power lines and phone service to the community. It also destroyed the CBC transmitter building, and the equipment inside it.

Northern communities have 'resilience'

"This is definitely not the first time that there's been a fire that has blocked access to Highway 599," said Hussey, noting that the town is currently working with the federal and provincial governments on a grant structure to build another access route.

Everyone in the town had electricityby shortly before midnight June 7, and residential phone service should be fully restored by Monday.

"There definitely something to be said about northern communities and their resilience," said Hussey. "Northern communities really come together when there's a storm and we definitely shelter each other."

The fire, Sioux Lookout 8, is now over 800 hectares in size, and still has not been declared "under control", although the threat seems to be subsiding, she said. However, a 24-hour evacuation notice remains in effect until the fire is deemed held or under control.