More than 800 people remain displaced by wildfires in northwestern Ontario

About 2,000 evacuees from across northwestern Ontario have returned home since a surge of wildfire activity in mid-July.

Still, about 829 people remain displaced as of Friday, according to officials at Ontario’s Ministry of Emergency Preparedness and Response.

This summer’s wildfires saw the evacuation of well over a dozen communities in the region, mostly consisting of First Nations, as well as the total destruction of two communities: Namaygoosisagagun First Nation (also known as Collins First Nation) and Whitewater Lake First Nation.

As wildfire threats have eased in much of the region, Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek (also known as Gull Bay First Nation) lifted its state of emergency from mid-July on Wednesday, with chief and council encouraging evacuees to return home.

Last week, Gull Bay’s Chief Wilfred King decried the Ontario government's withdrawal of wildfire implementation and evacuation orders around the community, saying “our members are still at risk and our infrastructure is at risk.”

Though King had cautioned against premature optimism over reduced forest fire hazards, he and two band councillors were able to assess the situation in a helicopter on Tuesday morning.

“Although there were some hot spots, we were informed that MNR (Ministry of Natural Resources) was making sure that the west side of those fires were being manned properly,” King told CBC News on Thursday.

“We didn't see big fires or a lot of smoke, so we were confident that things have improved dramatically.”

Here's the latest on northwestern Ontario's forest fires: Friday, Aug. 14

Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek 'vehemently' opposes Ontario ending wildfire implementation, evacuation orders

That said, King is continuing to advocate for a public inquiry into the province’s wildfire response due to concerns over lack of communication with First Nation leaders and inadequate emergency preparedness measures.

“There are some things initially that happened a month ago that still needs to be addressed,” King said.

Gull Bay First Nation is an Ojibway community about 215 kilometres north of Thunder Bay. About 370 people live there.

While road access to Gull Bay has been restored, Highway 527 between Kopka River and Armstrong remains closed in both directions, as well as a large section of Highway 811, due to nearby wildfires.