Western Canada is not done with fires. The latter have intensified again, leading to the evacuation of several thousand people, while to the east, in Quebec, the authorities expect a firefight on Saturday that will last ” all summer “.
After a few days of respite, the fires resumed in Alberta. An evacuation order was issued Friday evening in the city of Edson, which has a population of about 8,400, the second largest since early May.
“The fire is so out of control that some forestry teams have had to back off”described Luc Mercier, the administrative manager for the Yellowhead County, Edson area. “They can’t put out this fire”.
In northeastern British Columbia, the town of Tumbler Ridge, with a population of 2,400, was also largely evacuated, after a fire approached within a few miles of the town.
In Quebec, Public Security Minister François Bonnardel said on Saturday morning that the situation in the center and northwest of the province remains difficult, with several municipalities still under threat. Northeast fires are considered “stable”. “It’s the first time in the history of Quebec to fight so many fires, to evacuate so many people”he has declared. “We will have a fight that we think will last all summer”added the minister.
Nearly 14,000 people are still under evacuation orders in Quebec, according to the Minister of Public Safety.
Across the country, the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center lists 416 active fires, with 203 of them out of control. Canada is experiencing an unprecedented year with more than 4.6 million hectares burned since the beginning of the year, a total well above the average for recent decades.
