Ontario NDP Deputy Leader Sol Mamakwa, along with Thunder Bay—Superior North MPP Lise Vaugeois and Mushkegowuk—James Bay MPP Guy Bourgouin, are backing a call from the Chiefs of Ontario for the province to declare a state of emergency amid wildfires throughout the northwest.
The joint statement also calls for the provincial and federal governments to remove jurisdictional barriers and coordinate emergency supports for First Nations affected by wildfires, including evacuation, transportation, accommodation, health services and community fire protection resources.
“Northern Ontario is burning,” Mamakwa said. “Communities across northern Ontario are in crisis as close to 200 wildfires rage, threatening to take away their homes. For the people living in Namaygoosisagagun First Nation (Collins), this is no longer just a threat, but a lived reality as all the houses in the community have burnt to the ground.”
Lise Vaugeois wrote that the wildfires are spreading across the north at an unprecedented pace, overwhelming available resources. While firefighters and municipalities such as Thunder Bay are doing everything they can to respond, she argued the scale of the crisis requires additional provincial and federal support, including a state of emergency and the deployment of more resources to protect threatened communities.
Guy Bourgouin said governments need to act immediately, warning that delays in responding to the wildfire crisis could have devastating consequences. He pointed to the recent response to flooding in Ottawa as an example of how slow action can hamper emergency efforts, noting that one northern community has already been destroyed and others remain under threat.
“The Premier needs call for a state of emergency and every level must work together to get the support needed to protect homes, infrastructure, and livelihoods,” the statement concluded.
