- Massive wildfires force thousands to evacuate in western Canada
- Over 130 wildfires rage, with 40 beyond control
- Climate crisis intensifies wildfire season, affecting air quality
Massive, uncontrolled wildfires have forced the evacuation of thousands of people from western Canada, where the nation is confronted with the possibility of yet another catastrophic fire season.
This week, a fire that “dramatically” spread in a matter of days and was approaching the locality forced residents of the northeastern British Columbia community of Fort Nelson to flee their homes.
Authorities in the neighboring province of Alberta advised residents of Fort McMurray, a town in the center of the Canadian tar sands region, to evacuate within two hours due to an approaching wildfire.
Experts believe that climate change exacerbated the crisis that resulted in hundreds of wildfires raging through provinces and territories last year, marking the most intense fire season in Canadian history.
The following information is critical regarding the ongoing wildfires.
In Canada, how many wildfires are currently active?
A total of over 130 wildfires are presently raging throughout Canada, as reported by the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC).
As of Wednesday morning, 40 of these were considered uncontrollable.
The CIFFC has determined that over 1,000 wildfires have consumed approximately 336,000 hectares (830,000 acres) of land in Canada thus far this year.
In which areas are the fires presently raging?
The majority of the fires are located in Alberta and British Columbia, according to the CIFFC’s website.
In addition to Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and the Northwest Territories, additional outbreaks have occurred in other regions of the country.
The location marked the issuance of evacuation orders.
The Parker Lake conflagration forced the evacuation of approximately 3,500 individuals from Fort Nelson and Fort Nelson First Nation, located in northeastern British Columbia. The fire had expanded to over 8,400 hectares (20,700 acres) by Tuesday.
Authorities in Alberta issued evacuation orders for the Fort McMurray neighborhoods of Abasand, Beacon Hill, Prairie Creek, and Grayling Terrace on Tuesday afternoon.
A catastrophic wildfire in 2016 consumed the town, prompting the current “evacuation alert”. Therefore, residents should prepare to leave in the event of an evacuation order.
The Alberta Wildfire Agency predicted on Wednesday morning that favorable winds will push the fire away from Fort McMurray as crews continue to contain it.
Parts of northern Manitoba, located in the heart of Canada, have also evacuated its pupils. An uncontrolled wildfire has expanded to an area of 31,600 hectares (78,000 acres) near the provincial border with Saskatchewan, in the vicinity of the small communities of Flin Flon and The Pas.
What’s the cause of the wildfires?
Lightning strikes or human activity are the main causes of wildfires in Canada.
“Holdover fires” refers to a portion of the blazes that are currently threatening the nation. “Submergent fires” are fires that persist under snow during the winter season and rekindle as the temperature rises in the spring.
Authorities report that high winds and arid conditions are fueling the wildfires.
The northeastern region of British Columbia, according to Ben Boghean, a fire behavior specialist with the BC Wildfire Service, “has endured multiple years of drought, including a below-average snowpack this past winter.”
He explained, “As a consequence, the forests in the Fort Nelson zone are exceptionally susceptible to fresh fire ignitions and spread at a rapid rate,” noting that the Parker Lake wildfire, detected four hours after it ignited amid high winds, expanded by eight kilometers (five miles).
Boghean stated, “This rapid growth demonstrated how arid and volatile the forest fuels are up here.”
Does the climate crisis play a role?
Higher temperatures, according to experts, have prolonged the Canadian wildfire season, which typically lasts from late April to September or October, and intensified lightning, a significant contributor to the fires.
A year ago, Mike Flannigan, research chair for emergency management, fire science, and predictive services at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, stated that a heated atmosphere also dries out fire fuels, including forest floor vegetation.
According to Flannigan, these drier fuels facilitate fire ignition and spread, resulting in flames of greater intensity that are “difficult to impossible to extinguish.”
What additional consequences do the disasters cause?
There have been air quality alerts in the United States and several Canadian provinces.
Over the past week, the US media reported that pollution from Canadian wildfires prompted alerts in parts of Montana, North and South Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota.
In 2023, the record-setting Canadian wildfire season produced enormous columns of smoke south of the U.S. border.
“Many individuals are preoccupied with the question, ‘Is this the new normal?'” This week, three University of Iowa professors contributed to The Conversation. “As air quality scientists, we believe the probable response is affirmative.”
