Published: July 06, 2011

Governement of Canada Assisting Province of Ontario With Fire Evacuation

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Today, the Honourable Vic Toews, Canada's Minister of Public Safety, and the Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of National Defence, issued the following statement in support of the residents of Deer Lake First Nation community, who are facing imminent danger as a result of a major forest fire.

"Our government has responded swiftly to an urgent request from the Province of Ontario as a result of this serious situation facing the community of Deer Lake.

At this time, two Canadian Forces CC-130 Hercules aircraft from 435 Squadron based at 17 Wing Winnipeg are assisting with evacuation efforts in the area. To quickly respond to this life-threatening emergency, the Commander of Canada Command, Lieutenant-General Walter Semianiw, declared a major Search and Rescue operation, deploying air assets within two hours of the request for assistance. Residents will be evacuated to Greenstone, Ontario.

We are also closely monitoring the situation through the Government Operations Centre, and will continue to work closely with the Province of Ontario to identify any other issues and to offer any further assistance that may be required."