With the rain of the last few hours and the cooler weather, the Société de protection des forêts contre le feu (SOPFEU) has managed to contain the fires north of Sept-Îles and Port-Cartier. Work will continue to completely extinguish them.
For the first time since June 20, the map listing forest fires no longer includes uncontrolled fires near north coastal communities and infrastructure.
Our fires came in as contained, largely due to yesterday’s weather conditions. But that doesn’t mean that the fight is completely won, for that you have to master them.
The fires are described as contents
by SOPFEU when their progress is stopped.
The work is therefore continuing by air tanker, by helicopter and on the ground, explains Isabelle Gariépy. Once a fire is contained, there is a lot of work to do to bring it completely under control. We also continue to do thermovision, to ensure that there is no more smoke.
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More workers expected
The SOPFEU still relies on the strength of 200 workers gathered at the Sept-Îles complex. This number will be increased by 60 more employees by the end of the week.
It takes a lot of people at this point.
she adds. Initially, with a forest fire, we work a lot with aerial watering, then we work on the ground.
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The SOPFEU team attends a meeting every morning at the Sept-Îles camp before taking action.
Photo: Forest Fire Protection Society
In the Moisie River sector, north of Sept-Îles, teams are working more specifically on the southern portion of the fire in order to protect communities.
The fight against the fire located near the Sainte-Marguerite River north of Sept-Îles has already moved to the next stage: the fire is under control, assures SOPFEU.
Although the fires are contained, the City of Port-Cartier is maintaining the state of emergency, and the City of Sept-Îles is reiterating the pre-alert for the Gallix and Lac-Labrie sectors, since the fires could regain strength due to weather conditions.
The flammability index is now at its lowest throughout the region, with the exception of the Petit-Mécatina sector, where it is moderate. However, the ban on open fires remains in effect east of the Manicouagan River.
