Mattagami

In the 1920s, to ensure a steady supply of newsprint for The Times and business for Kimberly-Clark, makers of Kleenex, the companies dammed the Mattagami River at Smoky Falls, amid northern Ontario’s boundless ocean of black spruce, poplar, tamarack and birch; harnessed the river’s power through four gigantic turbines; forged a 50-mile railroad; constructed an enormous mill; and leased the cutting rights to 4,300 square miles of boreal forest — an area twice the size of Prince Edward Island.

In 1924, he and James C. Kimberly canoed together down the Kapuskasing and Mattagami Rivers, all the way to Moose Factory on James Bay.

Five of the cars landed in the Mattagami River.

Residents of the Mattagami First Nation were also advised not to drink water from the river, Coughlin said.

Residents of Gogama and the nearby Mattagami First Nation were being asked to stay inside until further notice for public safety due to possible smoke inhalation, police said.