The fire hazard across most of the territory has dropped to low, but people still need to be vigilant, says fire information officer Mike Fancie of Yukon Wildland Fire Management.

Fancie said today there was a human-caused fire reported in Pelly Crossing on Sunday that was quickly reported and extinguished.

Even if burn conditions don’t appear to be hazardous because of weather conditions and precipitation, wildfires can still get going, he said.

Sunday’s human-caused fire is “an important reminder that people still need to be careful with fires because we are still in fire season,” he said.

As of this morning, the fire hazard was low in every region except Watson Lake and Whitehorse, where it’s moderate.

Fancie said there is still an evacuation alert for the Keno City and Elsa area, though the Shanghai Creek fire remains at 8,227 hectares.

Crews spent the weekend reinforcing the fire guard along the southwest and northwest sections of the fire closest to the area affected by the evacuation alert, he said.

He said there was no advancement of the fire toward Keno or Elsa.

Structural protection remains in place for properties north of the fire in the Hanson Lake area.

Rain in the Mayo and Dawson regions is providing firefighters with a leg up on the 111,180 hectare Pigue Creek fire along the Klondike Highway and on the Hunker Summit fire south of Dawson, he said.

There are currently 66 active wildfires in the territory, many of which are located in wilderness zones.

There have been 107 fires so far this season, burning an estimated 248,719 hectares.