Wildfire near Kátł'odeeche and Hay River now classified as being held

N.W.T. Fire says the wildfire burning near Hay River and Kátł'odeeche First Nation reserve is now being held — which means it is not expected to grow, as long as current conditions remain the same. 

"We can make this assessment because of the team's strong progress towards building control lines on the south end, and southeast flank of the fire," reads N.W.T. Fire's latest update Thursday morning. 

Mike Westwick, a fire information officer for the territorial government, said those lines have so far prevented the fire from spreading toward Highway 5.

"In that area there's continuous forest, and if the fire did spread to that area, we had concerns that it might continue making its way south and hook to the east toward the river and the town," he said. 

He also explained the fire's new status. 

"Basically 'being held' … there's slightly less certainty than if we called it 'under control'," he said. 

The fire remains active and firefighting efforts are ongoing, including extinguishing any fuel near the control lines and "mop up" — putting out any hot areas and turning over the dirt until it is cooled down. 

"It is not a certainty that fires which are Being Held remain that way forever," reads the update. "Vigilance is needed going forward to maintain that status."

Westwick added that flare-ups could still happen throughout the summer.

"There's still trees and other fuel which could burn in there, and our team is addressing those hotspots as they come up, currently," he said. "But people do need to be prepared to see smoke in the next little while.

Earlier Thursday morning, fire information officer Mike Westwick said the biggest concern right now remains the possibility of the fire spreading to the south into continuous forest, and then hooking east.

The change in status for the fire comes as Hay River residents start to return home. 

It's still not clear when residents from the Kátł'odeeche First Nation reserve will be able to go back to the community. Inspection of the damages were set to begin Thursday. 

'I get to save our land' 

Leroy Andre Jr. has been in Hay River for a week fighting the wildfire

For the past three summers, he's been travelling to combat wildfires in the territory. 

"I get to save our land and help the communities," he said. 

He's the crew boss for four firefighters from the Sahtú. 

He and his crew have been covering a section south of the fire to put out any hotspots. 

"Our line looks pretty secure in that section," he said. 

Kieron Takazo is part of Andre's crew.

He said the experience has been exciting and interesting so far. 

"We see the land and the animals we save. Just yesterday, we saved a little rabbit baby," he said. 

When asked what the biggest challenge has been so far, he only needed a single word to answer: "Weather." 

When it comes to describing being on the front lines, the answer isn't so easy. 

"I don't know how to put that in words," he said. "I wouldn't say scary, but it's pretty cool … It's awesome to be a firefighter because you save all this around you."