Pangnirtung dump fire expected to burn through the night, mayor says

A fire at Pangnirtung’s wood and metal dump that began on the early hours of Friday morning burned throughout the day and is expected to continue throughout the night, Mayor Eric Lawlor told Nunatsiaq News.

“It’s still doing pretty badly,” he said.

As a result of the fumes that have come from the dump fire, the hamlet told residents on Friday to stay indoors because of the toxins that have been released into the air.

The top concern Friday afternoon was to prevent the fire from spreading to the chemical dump, as that would emit stronger toxic fumes into the community, Lawlor said.

“We’re doing our best to move a lot of that stuff away so that it doesn’t catch on fire and release the fumes and toxicity from those substances,” he added.

Environment and Climate Change Canada is currently measuring the air quality.

The dump itself is only a couple kilometres from the community, Lawlor said.

“It’s pretty close,” he added.

The fire was so difficult to extinguish because blizzard winds spread the flames, making it difficult for firefighters to get to the source of the blaze.

Since there are ice roads to get the dump, the fire has melted those roads and made it difficult for firefighters to get their heavy machinery through, Lawlor added.

The cold weather has also been tough on firefighters equipment.

“Most of their equipment ends up frozen stiff while they’re working,” Lawlor said.

Initially, the fire started in the wood dump but became more concerning once it hit the metal dump because toxic fumes are emitted from burning metal, Lawlor said.

The chemical dump, which firefighters are currently trying to clear, is near the wood dump, he added.

Firefighters are wearing special equipment to deal with the toxins coming from the fumes, Lawlor said.

At one point firefighters were unable to control the fire as it spread to the metal dump because that is where the propane tanks were, and firefighters had to stay away for safety.

“They had to take a break from that for a little bit until the propane tanks stopped blowing up,” Lawlor said.

Besides the chemical dump, Lawlor said his biggest concern is the health and support for the local firefighters trying to extinguish the flame.

Most of the 20 people working as firefighters are working as volunteers and are exhausted, he added.

“Most of them are only working on a couple hours sleep,” Lawlor said.

The firefighters also need equipment, as one of the fire truck engines broke down and the group is only operating with one truck right now.

Lawlor said an interagency group in the community has formed to deal with the fire and help the firefighters. That group includes the hamlet, schools, local businesses, Qikiqtani Inuit Association, federal government departments and other organizations.

The group is trying to get hot meals and warm shelter to the firefighters as those firefighters stay near the dump to try and extinguish the flames.

Lawlor added the hamlet is looking for help from other communities and additional volunteers.

The group is also looking to get more equipment for the firefighters, such as excavators and dozers to help extinguish the fire in the ground.

“I’m extremely grateful for all the hard work our firemen are doing and the support the community is giving,” Lawlor said.

He added he does not know when the fire will be extinguished, but said that better weather is expected and that should make it possible to get put it out.

For the future, Lawlor said the hamlet has found out the Government of Nunavut’s department of Community and Government Services has funding to improve the dump which the hamlet will follow up on to “prevent anything like this from happening again.”