Ontario firefighters get help from U.S. crews as more forest fires discovered

TORONTO – Firefighters battling active blazes in northeastern Ontario are now receiving help from fire crews from Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Shayne McCool, fire information officer with the province’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, says the increased manpower should help as more blazes are discovered.

He says 17 new forest fires were discovered on Wednesday, bringing the total number of active fires to 66.

He says 28 of them are not yet under control.

McCool says most of the new fires were relatively small, and they affected areas that had been previously spared, such as Cochrane, Ont., and Pembroke, Ont..

He says it’s impossible to determine how long it will take to extinguish the fires, because it depends a lot on the weather.

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2:24 Fire bans, restrictions imposed due to raging wildfires in Ontario