Here's the latest on northwestern Ontario's forest fires: Friday, Aug. 14

2 new wildfires were reported in the northwest as of Thursday evening

There are 95 active wildfires in northwestern Ontario, according to the latest report issued Thursday night from Ontario's Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services (AFFES).

Of those, 11 are not under control, five are being held, 10 are under control and the rest are being observed.

Two new fires were also confirmed in the northwest region as of Thursday evening:

The forest fire hazard is mostly low and moderate across northwestern Ontario, but there are significant areas of high hazard across southwestern parts of the region, including throughout the Thunder Bay and Kenora districts.

"Over the past month, Ontario has been dealing with a number of complex fires, particularly in the Quetico area, along the Canada-U.S. border and in Wabakimi north of Lake Nipigon, following a large scale lightning storm that passed through the region," said Mike Harris, minister of Natural Resources, at a Tuesday press conference.

Crews, pilots, emergency responders and support staff have remained focused on keeping people safe, Harris added.

"We have more than 150 Ontario fire crews supported by nearly 100 aircraft, including over 80 helicopters and water bombers, working closely with partners from across Canada and North America," Harris said.

Over the coming days and weeks, he said Ontario will likely see some of its partners start to reposition their resources back to their home regions — some having already gone back to Alberta and now been repositioned out to British Columbia.

Roughly 1,150 people remain displaced

As of Tuesday, 14 communities have been evacuated, six have returned home and one is in the process of returning its members home, according to Jill Dunlop, minister of Emergency Preparedness and Response, who spoke at the Tuesday press conference alongside Harris.

About 1,150 evacuees remain in host communities across the province, she said.

To date, Dunlop said the ministry has held 113 coordination calls with First Nation chiefs, community leaders, emergency management partners, municipalities and the federal government.

Evacuation, implementation orders

Evacuation orders or alerts remain in effect for areas near the following fires:

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Those under evacuation orders are required to leave the area, while those under evacuation alerts are urged to prepare to evacuate.

"My ministry is also conducting assessment flights to document property damage and loss. Impacted property owners can contact 211 to receive information from our ministry staff and support on the next steps," Harris said.

He said that the ministry is also currently working closely with Namaygoosisagagun First Nation to restore the road back to the landing on the lake, which goes into the community, and ministry engineers are doing some work on its first bridge to try and expedite construction.

The ministry is also working with camps, tourist operators and similar stakeholders to try and get them back to assess damages, Harris added.

Northwestern Ontario and a small portion of northeastern Ontario remain under a restricted fire zone, which means no open-air burning, including campfires, is allowed.

Notice to Air Missions, or NOTAMs, have also been issued for Thunder Bay 36 and Fort Frances 14.

However, updates have been made to the implementation order currently in effect for active Thunder Bay 36, 56 and Dryden 34, 35 in the Thunder Bay–Ignace District on Friday, removing some areas previously included.

The Ministry of Natural Resources Thunder Bay-Ignace District has revoked an implementation order for areas near Fort Frances 14 as of Aug. 12, meaning all travel and use of roads and lakes in this area is permitted.

The province said wildfire suppression activities are ongoing on the fire, but public safety relating to these fires is no longer a concern.

The evacuation alerts around active wildfire Fort Frances 13, known as the "Little Knife" fire in Minnesota, have been lifted.

The AFFES said suppression efforts are ongoing on Fort Frances 13, but there is no longer any concerns for public safety relating to the fires. Restrictions remain for other fires in the area.

According to the province's interactive highway map, the following roads are closed due to wildfire activity:

The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) urge people for their safety and the safety of emergency responders to:

Canada Post red delivery service alerts

Mail delivery has been suspended in the following communities due to wildfire activity:

Two new fires were confirmed in the northeast as of Thursday evening:

There are currently 44 active wildland fires in the northeast region. Of those, one is not under control, one is being held, four are under control and 38 are being observed.

Forest fire danger ratings are primarily low and moderate across northeastern Ontario, with some high-hazard pockets in the southwest, particularly around Sault Ste. Marie and toward Greater Sudbury.

The ministry said it is providing an additional $650 million to purchase six new waterbombers and five new helicopters.

It has also added 170 new permanent fire personnel positions, including crew lead roles, and increased compensation for staff, including firefighters and pilots.

The ministry will conduct an after-action review of its wildfire response to inform improvements in planning and response.

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There have also been four Ontario Corps partners and 17 Ontario Corps volunteers sent to help. In addition to reception centres set up in Thunder Bay and Dryden, the province said the following equipment/supplies have been provided:

Air purifiers, air scrubbers and replacement filters, in particular, were sent to five First Nations, allowing them to remain in their communities.

As part of these efforts, Feed Ontario and the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres are also shipping and distributing food to evacuees.

In addition, the Kaministiquia and Upsala fire departments were among some regional fire services to receive wildland fire skids from GlobalMedic.

With files from Sarah Law, Kris Ketonen and Nicky Shaw