Minto Mine officials are keeping a close eye on a fast-growing forest fire and has a four-stage evacuation plan in place that could soon see employees leaving the site.

"We have an emergency plan in place,” Stephen Quin, president of the mine's parent company, Capstone Mining, said this morning.

The mine has been able to continue with its usual operations since the now 2,000-hectare fire began last Sunday, when it grew to 200 ha.

The four-stage evacuation plan for the 150 employees would only start when the blaze gets within about nine kilometres of the mine site and start with administrative staff, Quin said. Then, if the fire drew closer, in three-kilometre intervals, further staff would be evacuated.

Late this morning, Wildland Fire Management said the fire is now about 9.1 km from the mine.

Reached shortly after 1:00 this afternoon, Quin said the mine won't begin evacuating until the blaze is within nine km of the site's buildings rather than the periphery of the property as is the case now.

Earlier in the day, he believed the blaze to be about 12 km away from the mine.

He said the staged approach to evacuating means the mine would avoid a mass exodus of the entire site all at once.

He added that officials are in contact with Wildland Fire Management on a continuous basis.

It's believed the fire was started when winds pushed a tree onto a power line to the mine site.

The mine has been operating on diesel generation since then and it's unknown how long that will continue. The mine has also moved equipment – a bulldozer, backhoe and water pump – to the fire so they're there if need be.

Quin also said the mine is using sprinkler systems to water "vulnerable areas” at the site to prevent the blaze from getting too close to the mine site.

The barge to ferry ore trucks across the Yukon River to Minto Landing was scheduled to go into the water today, he said. It is now set to do double duty serving as a way to transport firefighting equipment across the river.

Quin noted he's been pleased with the updates Wildland Fire Management officials have been providing to the mine.

"We have an excellent working relationship with them,” he said.

This morning, Wildland Fire Management said Tuesday's overcast conditions helped limit the blaze's aggression, allowing crews to reinforce protection of the mine site. It's expected that work will continue today.

Of the nine fires currently burning in the territory, three started yesterday with one in the Whitehorse fire district – which is listed as being in extreme fire danger – and two in Old Crow, which is at a low danger rating.

The Copper Ridge area fire is one of seven the district has seen this season, all of which have burned a total of 1.15 hectares.

Two crews extinguished the fire quickly after it was reported just before 6 p.m.

"This fire was human-caused, and that is an obvious concern considering the extremely volatile fire conditions right now in much of the territory,” deputy officer Mike Sparks said in a statement this morning. "An open fire ban remains in effect for the territory, and we need the public to ensure they are abiding by it.”

The two new Old Crow fires make up half of the blazes the area has seen this season, which have burned a total of 21.4 ha.

They are burning parallel to one another in a wilderness zone south of Eagle Plains with no structures at risk. Crews will be reassessing that situation later today.

Dawson City has experienced the highest amount of burning at 19,634.10 ha with four of the five fires still active.

Fires burning there have grown significantly, including one near the Dempster Highway, Wildland Fire Management said this morning. They will also be reassessed today.

"Officials will also be patrolling smoke reports in Old Crow and Mayo,” officials said.

Carmacks, the district where the Minto fire is burning, has seen 12,486.10 ha burned, with all three of the blazes started there over the season still active.

The fire danger rating across the territory is extreme with the exceptions of Old Crow, Haines Junction, listed as high, and Beaver Creek, listed as moderate.

A total of 32,153.42 ha have burned in the territory during this fire season.

Wildfires can be reported to 1-888-798-3473.

Meanwhile, there are temporary traffic delays on the Alaska Highway west of Tok, Alaska because of the Eagle Trail fire, which began last week and has grown to 5,806 hectares.

The highway, however, remains open.