THUNDER BAY – The City of Thunder Bay has rejected a provincial request to host more evacuees from Deer Lake First Nation, saying it's at capacity with over 1,100 people fleeing forest fires already accommodated.
City administration turned down a provincial request to welcome another 470 Deer Lake residents currently staying in Cornwall on Thursday.
The decision will head to city council for review on Monday, in accordance with a motion passed by council last year requiring notification from staff when hosting requests are declined.
In a memo to council released Friday, city manager Norm Gale said there were already around 1,170 forest fire evacuees in Thunder Bay from Poplar Hill, Deer Lake, and Pikangikum First Nations, all of which have been threatened by nearby forest fires, along with other communities in the Northwest.
“There has been thoughtful consideration regarding this transfer request,” he wrote. “Concern for the evacuees, resources from all emergency service units, and considering that this is a transfer of evacuees and not an emergency evacuation situation, the City of Thunder Bay has determined it is not in a position to accept the transfer request.”
The city would be unable to provide adequate supports to more evacuees while maintaining required service levels for police, fire, and EMS, Gale said, with local emergency services “operating at capacity.”
He also said Thunder Bay’s regional hospital was at 91 per cent capacity and experiencing staffing shortages, and that city staff did not have the capacity to run more facilities for evacuees.
“Evacuees will not have access to all resources, personnel and services that they require
which is neither safe nor fair,” he wrote.
The city is on stand-by as a transportation hub for life threatening evacuations if required, however.
Fire crews are working to combat a 52,106-hectare fire known as Red Lake 51 that was burning 24 kilometres west of Deer Lake as of Thursday.
The city welcomed about 100 vulnerable members of the community of roughly 1,100, located 650 kilometres northwest of Thunder Bay, in mid-July.
