Steph Deschamps / May 14, 2024
After a catastrophic year in 2023, the forest fire season got off to an early start in Canada. Thousands of people had to be evacuated in the west of the country on Sunday, where hundreds of blazes are raging. "The fires are really all around us, from the west to the northeast," lamented Fort Nelson mayor Rob Fraser, imploring the hundred or so remaining residents to leave the town in northeastern British Columbia. Faced with the out-of-control blaze, almost 3,500 people had to be relocated 400 km further south on Friday evening.
After almost doubling in size during the day on Sunday, the fire, which now covers more than 4,000 hectares, could well hit homes as early as this Monday, May 13, estimates the province's fire department (BCWS). "The next 48 hours will be testing due to forecast westerly winds and extremely dry and volatile fuels in the area," said Ben Boghean of the BCWS, adding that the 70 firefighters responding to the blaze could also be at risk. According to the expert, the "multiple years of drought" that have affected the region and "the little snow received this winter" are the reason behind this uncontrolled advance.
In the neighboring province of Alberta, 44 fires are raging, including one in particular located some fifteen kilometers from Fort McMurray, forcing residents to prepare for a possible evacuation. This city in northwestern Alberta, located in the middle of the boreal forest and known for its oil sands operations, had already been ravaged in May 2016, forcing its 90,000 residents to leave the region in a hurry. This fire remains the biggest disaster in Canadian history, with more than 2,500 buildings destroyed and a cost of nearly 10 billion Canadian dollars.
Other evacuation orders were also issued over the weekend for small towns in Alberta and Manitoba, while high winds pushed smoke across the west of the country, suffocating several major cities. According to the federal government, air quality in these areas poses "very high" risks. In an update issued on Wednesday, Ottawa predicted that "above-normal temperatures" in the coming months, combined with "drought conditions", would "exacerbate the risk and intensity of forest fires ».
In 2023, Canada experienced the worst fire season in its history. The fires, which swept across the country from east to west, burned more than 15 million hectares, claimed the lives of eight firefighters and forced authorities to evacuate 230,000 people.