(Today’s Northumberland file photo)
Additional staff and equipment prepared to protect people and communities
Ontario is ready to respond to this year’s wildland fire season, which lasts from April 1 until October 31. This year the government has filled nearly 100 additional permanent positions to support the 2025 fire season and help ensure people and resources are in place to protect communities.
“We are ready to protect people, communities and properties across Ontario from wildland fires,” said Mike Harris, Minister of Natural Resources. “When wildland fires hit, our brave and dedicated FireRangers, pilots and support staff are prepared to battle these fires and protect Ontarians.”
Last year, the province partnered with the federal government to invest a total of $64 million in the wildland fire program. This investment has allowed Ontario to enhance its firefighting capacity for the 2025 fire season and includes funding for forest fire suppression equipment and technology, such as fuel systems, trucks and emergency management software.
Approximately 50 per cent of all wildland fires are caused by humans. There are actions the public can take to reduce the risks of forest fires:
- Before starting an outdoor fire, check the interactive map at ontario.ca/forestfires and ensure you are aware of the fire hazard and restrictions in place in your area.
- Follow Ontario’s outdoor burning regulations, including igniting fires no sooner than two hours before sunset and extinguishing them no later than two hours after sunrise.
- Ensure campfires do not get too big and are fully extinguished at the end of the evening or prior to leaving the site. Have tools and water on hand to control outdoor fires.
- To learn more about how to prepare your community or property to reduce the risk or impact of a wildland fire please visit how to prevent forest fires and ontario.ca/firesmart.
Ontario is recognized as an international leader in wildland fire management and proudly participates in agreements with its provincial, territorial, federal and international partners that allow for the sharing of personnel, equipment and aircraft between agencies during periods of escalated wildland fire activity.
Quick Facts
- Ontario has a fleet of specialized aircraft used to manage wildland fires, hundreds of highly trained staff, 14 fire management headquarters, three attack bases and 11 forward attack bases, two regional fire centres, one provincial fire centre (which houses the ministry emergency operations centre), two regional logistics centres and one provincial logistics centre, seven aircraft hangars and one flight training centre. Together, these resources are used to coordinate the protection of 90 million hectares of public land in Ontario.
- In 2024, Ontario saw more than 470 fires and nearly 90,000 hectares burned – compared to the 10-year average of 694 fires and 201,780 hectares burned.
- Approximately 50 per cent of all wildland fires are caused by humans.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
