Petawawa wildfire is out
A wildfire that raged through the Petawawa training area over the past five days forcing the closure of Algonquin Park is finally out, officials say.
While the blaze, which had spread to 210 hectares since last Thursday, has been classified as under control, the east side of Algonquin Park remained closed.
Base Petawawa fire chief Barry Nagora told a news conference at the fire hall Monday afternoon that while the flames have been extinguished, there is still concerns over embers deep in the soil and the potential for hotspots to flare up.
A second fire discovered in a swamp Saturday 14 kilometres east of the wildfire does not pose a threat to the base, the town or other crown lands. Firefighters will not enter the area and will simply allow the five-hectare blaze to burn itself out, said Chief Nagora, noting the risk of unexploded ordnances is too high.
Meanwhile, investigators are looking at meteorological records at the base, including lightning strike data, to confirm the cause. The chief ruled out human error.