Published 3:10 am Friday, July 24, 2026 Firefighter 14, Hamlet Services, Truck, more than 400 dumpsters filled with sand from Inuksuk Timber Company, and assisted by the Angiku Ikuku Quarry The fire had been burning for 10 days. After the surface was extinguished, Firefighter Mc Rayatt said the community could see smoke and be cold for weeks because the fire was buried under the dump. “Off,” Rayat says. You’ll still see a trail of dust sometimes because that’s when the dumpster is filled with something. There is nothing in the storage.” The firefighter said that when the landfill was used for many years, it was covered with garbage, buried in the ground and burned there. “The surface is no longer on fire,” he says. “The fire underneath is still burning and continuing for years.” He said it is common to see smoke coming from the landfill, even in winter. “We’ll see smoke in the winter from the landfill. In the dust.” Extinguishing the fire required 400 times a dump truck full of dirt, dumping it in all directions to contain the fire and stop the ventilation system, Rayat said. The fire department also fought water for five days, but its efforts did not help because of the lack of water at the dump. “We don’t have Covid for firefighters,” Rayat said. “You can just spray the water for two to three minutes and wait for the water tank to water the fire.” Around day nine of the fire, Anjiko Ikuku a miner was brought in to help deliver water from the swamp about 1 kilometer away with 6” Sulu to the dump. “I was able to get the ongoing water day and Nakba, and he was able to turn it off,” Rayat said. “That, together with the hamlet’s sandblasting, enabled us to accomplish our work by extinguishing the fire. “If there’s a little dust, you’ll smell it even if you don’t see it,” he said. “I mean, the landfill, it’s been accumulating for years, about 50-70 feet (15-20 m),” he says. He said that digging the garbage dump into the sand can help prevent the wind from reaching the temperature. Rayat congratulated everyone who helped in extinguishing the fire. “I would like to thank the hard working people who came that night,” he said. “It’s been a lot of work for everyone.” He also recognized the applicants and the hamlet providers. “They’re tired of working in the landfill,” he says. “They are working hard on this, and it has been extinguished, and it will continue to be extinguished. The cause of the fire is still under investigation and will not be considered intentional because the investigation cannot determine how it started. Ryan said it can cause a fire in any way, including metal overheating, sunglasses, batteries or overheating. He also explained that, in part, the fire could have been set deliberately. “Often, some people don’t have enough to do and they start working, so let’s have a little fuel and have a fire,” he says. He said that Rankin Inlet has been using the landfill fire every year for 11 years in the community. Ryan said the fire department has strengthened its partnership with Anjiko Ikuku Mining, which will enable firefighters to respond quickly to a fire at the landfill. “But if there’s no insurance, and many people go to the landfill, there’s nothing to do,” he said.
Over 400 trucks carrying sand helped extinguish the Rankin Inlet landfill fire for 10 days
