Yukon crews actively fighting one fire, monitoring 16 more

Of the 17wildfires in the Yukon, crews are actively fighting one the Takhini Bridge fire in Ibex Valley and are monitoring the others.

The Takhini Bridge fireremains out of control and has burned about 780 hectares of land.

Mike Fancie, a fire information officer with the Yukon government, said much of the work so far has been to keep the fire away from the Alaska Highway. That includes creating control lines and cleaning any possible unburned fuel.

Fancie saidin the past, fires would not be allowed to burn in the area and there's likely a build up of fuel.

In an update Tuesday afternoon, the Yukon government said crews would be building a backup dozer guard along the base of Ibex ridge "to help contain the fire's southeastern head, which [is]currently burning parallel to or away from the highway."

The update said 32 firefighters, four wildfire officers, a structure protection team, four helicopters and two air tankers were taking on the fire.

The highway remainedopen, but officials asked that drivers do not stop along the highway or side roads to allow safe travel for fire crews.

Karine Genest, a resident of Ibex Valley, said she learned of the fire when she smelled smoke over the weekend and she flew over the area with her drone.By then she started hearing sirens andhelicopters flying by.

Genestsaid the first night of hearing about the fire was stressful, but she's since heard from firefighters explaining their efforts.

"It's comforting in the way that you understand what's happening," she said.

She added that firefighters gave her "a long list" of ways to protect her home from fire,including removing leaves and other possible fuel if an ember were to land nearby.

She said the community has also come together to support one another sincean evacuation alert was issued Saturday.

"We even did an inventory or what we have to do to be able to go help," she said. "I don't feel alone."

Mayo 'ready for anything'

Meanwhile, the Reverse Creek fire near the Silver Trail has grown to about 1,000 hectares, Fancie said.

"It's an interesting thing to talk about fuels because it doesn't have a very continuous forest, so the burn is happening in fits and starts," he said.

The fire is about 10 kilometres from the Silver Trail and residents along the highway between kilometre 10 and kilometre 35 have been under an evacuation alert since Sunday.

"The area is not in imminent danger," said Fancie.

The current alert does not include the nearby community of Mayo.

Its mayor, Trevor Ellis, said the community is still acting as "business as usual" for the time being.

"We're just sort of in holding mode and getting a little bit of prep done just in case," said Ellis.

"If things escalate and an evacuation alert is issued for Mayo, we'll go door-to-door again and make sure everybody's got the message and knows what they're supposed to do," he said. "I think we're ready for anything."

That mostly comes down to staying calm and following Wildland Fire Management, Ellis said.

Fancie saidthere is a registry open for residents who may need to evacuate from their homes.

He said the registryhelps officials coordinatesupport for residents: anything from medical needs to finding accommodations for livestock.

Residents can call 867-332-4597 to register.

Ongoing fire ban and risk of lightning

The entireterritory is under a level 2 fire ban, meaning residents can only have fires in fire pits within road-accessible campgrounds.

Officials are also asking residents consider not building fires in windy conditions, keeping water close, and soaking and stirring fires before leaving.

Fancie said part of the reason for the fire ban is the possibility of lightning in the forecast.

"Generally speaking, lightning at this time of year is a hazard for us," he said.

"The fire ban that's been put in place takes these kinds of factors into the mix and and we know that for the most part over the summer Yukoners have been really, really good at being careful with fire and we hope we can continue to count on people's support."

Yukon government officials are expected to give an update on the wildfires in the territory at 3 p.m. local time.