Premier Doug Ford expected to visit Thunder Bay as fires rage in northern Ontario

Ontario Premier Doug Ford speaks in front of a live map of smoke movement during a press conference updating media on ongoing forest fires in Ontario, in Toronto, Friday, July 17, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston

Premier Doug Ford is planning to visit Thunder Bay, where many evacuees fleeing northern Ontario wildfires have sought shelter.

Ford is expected to join Natural Resources Minister Mike Harris in the city today, as the province faces criticism for its emergency response.

Nearly 200 wildfires are blazing across the province, already scorching more land than all of last year's fires and sending up plumes of hazardous smoke that have choked the skies across Ontario and parts of the United States.

Ford has said more than 150 fire crews and over 80 water bombers and helicopters are battling the wildfires and the province would spare no expense in keeping people safe.

Multiple northern communities have already been evacuated or have evacuations underway, and others are preparing for possible evacuations.

Ford has faced backlash over the level of funding and resources the province has allocated for wildfire response, while Harris has fielded criticism for his ministry's handling of the evacuations of two First Nation communities.

Residents of Whitesand First Nation and Namaygoosisagagun First Nation – also known as Collins First Nation – fled approaching wildfires without help from the province.

Harris said Friday that the fire that swallowed Collins First Nation as its residents escaped in boats was only spotted when it was already at the community's doorstep because it spread so fast.

Members of Collins First Nation and Whitesand First Nation are sheltering in Thunder Bay hotels, which, according to the city's top fire official, are near or at capacity after evacuees began to flow in on Monday.

Thunder Bay Fire Chief Dave Tarini said at least 500 people fleeing wildfires are sheltering in Thunder Bay, but that's likely a conservative estimate as it's hard to gauge an accurate number.

Most evacuees are being hosted by First Nation organizations or found available hotel space themselves, the fire chief says. He adds that Thunder Bay has not been officially asked to be a host community by the province, which would involve the city finding spaces to accommodate evacuees.

Tarini, who started his career fighting wildfires with the Ministry of Natural Resources in 1991, said this fire season is unprecedented in his more than 35 years as a firefighter.

"The amount of fires that are currently burning and the size of the fires is something that I personally haven't seen in the Thunder Bay district in my career," he said.

Tarini said he's alarmed at how fast the fires are moving overnight and he expects the wildfires to continue blazing unless the region sees a period of sustained rainfall.

"This is taxing a lot of the resources that are out there and we're certainly not out of the woods by a long stretch," he said.

The provinces say nine new wildfires were discovered on Friday.

An expanded evacuation alert has been issued for 29 townships threatened by a 550-square-kilometre fire raging south of Lac des Mille Lacs First Nation.

Residents of towns including Ames, Blackwell, Goldie, Lamport, Michener, Savanne and Upsala are asked to be prepared to evacuate on short notice. A full list of townships under the evacuation alert can be found on Ontario's forest fires web page.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 18, 2026.

Kathryn Mannie, The Canadian Press