Latest news with #Nipigon
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Severe storm risk persists across northern Ontario on Sunday night
An active day of severe weather will continue pushing east across the northern half of Ontario through the overnight hours Sunday into Monday. Keep an eye on the radar and stay aware of watches and warnings in your area. Know where to go and what to do if a tornado warning is issued for your location. DON'T MISS: Strong to severe storms persist overnight Several rounds of severe thunderstorms swept through northwestern Ontario during the day Sunday, first in the morning and again in the early evening hours. These evening storms will continue pushing east across northern Ontario after sunset, progressing across the province through the overnight hours into early Monday morning. Any of the stronger storms that sweep through communities like Nipigon, Geraldton, Kapuskasing, Chapleau, and Timmins could pack heavy rainfall, strong wind gusts, and large hail. WATCH: In a tornado warning? Here's what you should do Click here to view the video
CTV News
16-07-2025
- CTV News
Missing ATV rider charged with impaired driving in northern Ont.
An undated stock image of a man riding an all-terrain vehilce along an off road trail. (File photo/GettyImages/suriya silsaksom) A 67-year-old man from Pearl, Ont., has been charged with impaired operation after Ontario Provincial Police located him driving an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) on a rail bed in Dorion. OPP were notified of a missing person at around 10 p.m. on July 4, 2025. The individual was reported to be operating an ATV in the area. Officers located the driver about an hour later near Black Bay Drive. Authorities determined the driver was impaired by alcohol or drugs. According to this week's OPP news release, the man 'failed the approved screening device test' before being transported to the Nipigon detachment for further testing. Impaired driving A roadside approved screening device test registers a fail in this undated photo. (File photo/Ontario Provincial Police/X) As a result, the ATV enthusiast was charged with two impaired driving offences – including operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration of more than 80. Under provincial legislation, the rider also received a 90-day driver's licence suspension and the vehicle involved was impounded for seven days at the owner's expense. The accused was released from custody and is scheduled for a future court appearance in Nipigon. Police reiterate warnings against impaired driving In the release, OPP emphasized its commitment to removing impaired drivers from roads and trails through enforcement and education and urged the public to report impaired drivers. Report impaired drivers Ontario Provincial Police are urging the public to report suspected impaired drivers. (File photo/Supplied/Ontario Provincial Police) 'If you suspect that someone is driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs, it is important to call 911,' said police.
CTV News
09-07-2025
- CTV News
Quebec driver charged with stunt driving in northern Ont.
A 23-year-old man from Quebec has been charged with stunt driving on Highway 11-17 in northwestern Ontario. A 23-year-old man from Quebec has been charged with stunt driving on Highway 11-17 in northwestern Ontario. Ontario Provincial Police said the incident took place near Nipigon on July 5, just before 11 a.m. 'Utilizing the Lidar speed measuring device, the officer recorded the vehicle travelling at 147 km/h, in a posted 90 km/h zone,' police said in a news release Wednesday. Radar gun Quebec Police recorded the vehicle travelling at 147 km/h, in a posted 90 km/h zone. (OPP photo) Police pulled him over and charged him with stunt driving. The vehicle was impounded for two weeks and his driver's licence was suspended automatically for 30 days. The driver is scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Nipigon. 'The OPP remains committed to taking aggressive drivers off our roads through enforcement and public education,' police said. 'If you suspect that someone is driving aggressively, it is important to call 911 to report it.'
CBC
25-06-2025
- General
- CBC
Hundreds of wildfire evacuees from Webequie First Nation return home from Barrie, Ont.
Evacuees from Webequie First Nation in northwestern Ontario are on flights home after spending two weeks in Barrie due to a wildfire near their community. The remote Ojibway First Nation declared a state of emergency on May 29 due to Nipigon 5, a wildfire that has since grown to 10,800 hectares. More than 400 of the community's most vulnerable were sent hundreds of kilometres south to Barrie, about a one-hour drive north of Toronto, where they had been staying in hotels. Webequie's Chief Cornelius Wabasse has confirmed 200 people were repatriated on Monday, with 200 more expected to arrive back in Webequie on Tuesday. "The fire has decreased in activity. It has moved away from the community and we have fire crews over there maintaining it," Wabasse told CBC News early Tuesday afternoon. "The air quality has improved." It's expected all of the Webequie evacuees will be home by Thursday, he said, which means they'll be back in time to celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day (NIPD) on Saturday with singing, drumming, a community cookout and other activities. "People are very happy to go back to their community," Wabasse said. However, hundreds of people from other First Nations in the region remain displaced due to northwestern Ontario's largest wildfire, Red Lake 12, which measures 177,000 hectares. More than 2,000 people from Sandy Lake First Nation are staying in several communities in southern Ontario after the Canadian Armed Forces were called in to assist efforts with Hercules aircraft last week. Members of Keewaywin First Nation have also been evacuated, according to tribal council Keewaytinook Okimakanak. Evacuation efforts have been paused in North Spirit Lake for now. Meanwhile, roughly 800 people from Deer Lake First Nation have been in Toronto for more than two weeks. It's up to community leadership to determine when they're ready to repatriate their members. Deer Lake's Chief Leonard Mamakeesic says he'll be meeting with MNR officials on Wednesday to discuss next steps for his people. Keeping people, resources together Despite the stresses at hand, Mamakeesic says Deer Lake's evacuation has been going well. ISN Maskwa, an Indigenous-led emergency operations centre, has been providing security services and other support with assistance from Indigenous Services Canada (ISC). Deer Lake, Webequie First Nations communities evacuate as wildfires spread nearby 23 days ago Duration 1:37 The main priorities have been keeping people fed, distributing donations and making sure everyone is safe, he said. A doctor, a dentist and community nurses have been rotating through Deer Lake's accommodations in Toronto, "so nobody is missing their appointments." Deer Lake members were sent to Cornwall two years ago because of wildfires. Mamakeesic says it's been important for him to keep everyone in the same host community instead of having them scattered in hotels across multiple locations. "I pretty much moved my whole community here, all the resources and all the departments," he told CBC News on Tuesday. "I think we're doing great." As of Monday night, the wildfire hazard was mainly high across northwestern Ontario, with scattered patches of moderate and extreme hazard in some areas.
CBC
04-06-2025
- Climate
- CBC
As wildfire evacuations continue in northwestern Ontario, lightning threatens the landscape
Social Sharing Community members from Webequie First Nation in northwestern Ontario are continuing to be flown out as nearby wildfires show no signs of letting up. The remote Ojibway community declared a state of emergency and initiated a phase 1 evacuation last Thursday due to Nipigon 5, a wildfire measuring more than 8,500 hectares. The first evacuees were brought out on Monday, delayed by a shortage of aircraft due to competing demands in other communities impacted by wildfires, according to Webequie's Chief Cornelius Wabasse. As of Wednesday, more than 370 evacuees had been brought to Barrie, about a one-hour drive north of Toronto. "We're making progress, trying to get especially the vulnerable [community members] out, people that have respiratory issues and other medical conditions," Wabasse told CBC News on Wednesday. At that point, the fire was moving away from the community, though Wabasse said the wind was bringing heavy smoke from out west. Wabasse — identified as a community member prioritized for evacuation — is staying in Thunder Bay in order to be closer to his community to co-ordinate evacuation efforts. A number of resources have been set up for evacuees in Barrie, he said, including "medical support, counselling support, all those mental health supports as well, too." "I think they're doing a good job over there in Barrie, making sure that everybody is comfortable and that we don't overlook the well-being of those people that are there," Wabasse said. On Wednesday, four more flights were scheduled out of Webequie, with more expected to take place Thursday. Meanwhile, hundreds of evacuees from Deer Lake First Nation are staying in Toronto, while members of Wabaseemoong Independent Nations have been in Niagara Falls since mid-May. A number of special air quality statements and warnings remain in effect across the region due to smoke pollution from both Ontario and Manitoba wildfires. "Our officers have been assisting in Webequie First Nation this week where forest fires have forced the evacuation of the community. Our thoughts are with the people of this Webequie First Nation and other Nishnawbe Aski Nation communities across the province being threatened by Ontario wildfires," the Nishnawbe Aski Police Service posted on Facebook Wednesday. "We would also like to take a moment to thank our NAPS officers who have stepped up during this time of crisis and provided their communities with the services they expect and deserve. "We've dispatched additional officers to Webequie, who are now also helping to ensure community safety is maintained and that evacuated residents receive the help they need during this stressful time," the post says. Fires 'gaining size very fast' Chris Marchand, a fire information officer with Ontario's Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services who is based in Dryden, said the 2025 wildfire season can already be characterized as a busy year. "We had a very early start in May and several weeks with rather minimal precipitation across the northwest," Marchand told CBC's Up North on Wednesday. "One real concern is how receptive our landscape is becoming to fires caused by lightning — not only are our forest fuels extremely dry, but so is the ground. And then that really makes it easier for lightning fires to get started, for fires in general to burn deeper and require more effort and resources to extinguish." Marchand said firefighters from British Columbia have been lending their support in the region, but one challenge is that "the fires that we're finding are gaining size very fast." "In a lot of situations, air attack has been required with water bombers to really reduce the intensity of these fires when they're initially discovered, to allow crews to get in quickly and to make sure that they don't become larger problems," Marchand said. Though there has been scattered rainfall over the past few days, the region remains dry, said Marchand, which is why it's important for people to continue obeying the rules of the restricted fire zone in place — namely, not lighting campfires, burn barrels or burn piles. Drones have also become an issue since they can hinder aerial operations around wildfires, he added. "The presence of a drone presents a danger to air crews and can result in the cancellation of an air attack mission that is usually being sent to protect lives or property — so please, no drones within nine kilometres of a wildland fire," said Marchand.
