Ottawa: Firefighters in western Canada are currently engaged in combat with a significant wildfire just outside the largely-evacuated remote town of Fort Nelson in British Columbia, according to a local official.
Fort Nelson finds itself directly in the path of one of the season’s initial major wildfires, which has already spread to approximately 10,000 hectares (24,710 acres) across Western Canada. The blaze is generating plumes of smoke that extend across five Canadian provinces, as well as portions of northern Minnesota.
Mayor Rob Fraser of the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality, home to Fort Nelson, reported that the fire advanced closer overnight to the town, which typically houses about 3,500 residents, and is currently approximately 1.5 km (0.9 mile) away.
“They’re bombing it, they’re dropping water with helicopters. We’ve got local crews with CATs (caterpillar tractors) and equipment, building firebreaks,” Fraser informed the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. “It’s all hands on deck.”
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Following last year’s devastating wildfire season, Canada has faced one of its warmest winters on record, with little to no snow in many regions. This has raised concerns about the potential for intense wildfires in forests and wilderness areas amid ongoing drought conditions.
“The forecast that I hear is that we’re going to get a westerly flow which could bring the fire closer to the community,” Fraser stated. “There’s some fields between us … so that could slow it down, but if we get 40 kph gusts, it won’t take very long.”
The federal government issued a warning last month, indicating that Canada could be headed for another catastrophic wildfire season, as higher-than-normal spring and summer temperatures are anticipated across much of the country, exacerbated by El Niño weather patterns.
As of Sunday, there were approximately 143 active wildfires across Canada, with 39 of them classified as out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.
An evacuation alert was recently issued for Fort McMurray, Alberta, as an out-of-control fire continued to burn southwest of the major Canadian oil town.
