The MRC Pontiac are keeping plenty of distance between them and four wildfires burning in the area.
The municipality’s fire and public safety coordinator, Julien Gagnon explains that they’ve barricaded roads up to the biggest blaze at the moment, which covers over 800 hectares of forest north of Pembroke near Lake Nilgaut.
Gagnon says the SOPFEU, Quebec’s forest fire monitoring and management agency, already have their hands full with around 150 wildfires across the province.
That means it might be some time before they are able to help contain what is currently happening locally.
He adds that the SOPFEU’s decision to prioritize fires elsewhere comes down to the fact that what is burning near us is not actually all that close to the community.
There are still concerns about the fires spreading, and Gagnon says the northern part of the territory has been placed under a ministerial decree which restricts access to the area for safety reasons.
He also goes on to note that community has done “very well” to help each other while they wait for aid from SOPFEU, with everyone pitching in to keep one another in the loop.
One of the MRC Pontiac’s top priorities right now is to monitor the local air quality as smoke from the wildfires continues to move into more populated areas of the region.
Residents most vulnerable to the affects of smoke inhalation are being asked to stay indoors and avoid exposure to it.
(written by Kasey Egan)
