State of emergency in Kirkland Lake as crews battle forest fires

A state of emergency has been declared in Kirkland Lake as crews battle forest fires.

More than 280 square kilometres of forest are burning across northeastern Ontario.

In Kirkland Lake alone, 300 people have been asked to leave their homes and cottages.  That fire began around 11:30 p.m. Sunday.

The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources has sent in water bombers to extinguish the blaze.

According to local radio station CKJL FM, schools in the area are closed but Northern College is open. Ontario Northland trains are not running due to track damage and all area highways remain open, except for Airport Road.

Last year, there were 1,330 forest fires in Ontario, covering 632,533 hectares. So far this year, there have been 297 fires in the province.

Click here to see the current forest fire situation (Ministry of Natural Resources)

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