Topic
Wildfires in Canada
The latest news and updates as we track the impact of wildfires, smoke and air quality alerts around Canada.
Top Stories
7 human-caused wildfires reported in central B.C. in 1 afternoon
- Wildfire crews are battling an out-of-control wildfire in central British Columbia — one of seven human-caused blazes reported in the Cariboo region on Saturday afternoon.The Burgess Creek fire has ballooned overnight, growing from 0.5 square kilometres to 16 square kilometres in size on Sunday. It is burning about 50 kilometres south of Quesnel, a city about 415 kilometres northeast of Vancouver.The fire is sending a thick plume of smoke into the air that is visible from Quesnel, Williams Lake
Latest wildfire updates and impacts
- NewsThe Canadian Press
Canadian wildfires 'entirely' drove surge in global tree loss in 2023, study says
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — A global forest study says Canadian wildfires last year were "entirely" to blame for a worldwide surge in tree losses. The study released by researchers at the University of Maryland on the Global Forest Watch website says tree cover loss in 2023 reached 28.3 million hectares globally, a 24 per cent jump driven by Canada's loss of 8.6 million hectares last year. Without taking Canada's losses into account, global tree loss would have decreased by four per cent in 2023, the re
- NewsCBC
Dene Nation continues push for public inquiry on N.W.T.'s handling of wildfires
The Dene Nation is continuing to push for an independent and public inquiry into the handling of the 2023 wildfires that led to the evacuation of about 70 per cent of the territory's residents. In February they sent a letter to the N.W.T. commissioner, demanding that one be held. And on Monday elders and community leaders met for a virtual discussion about their concerns with how the the Government of Northwest Territories (GNWT) handled the response, in hopes that they won't have to go through
- NewsCBC
Large, early wildfires unlikely this spring, say Yukon officials
Yukon fire officials say they're preparing for the upcoming wildfire season — though they're not expecting any sort of dramatic early start this year.That's based on precipitation patterns through the fall and winter, and weather forecasts for the coming months, says Michael Smith, chief meteorologist with Yukon Wildland Fire Management."We're quite confident in saying it will be at least a normal start to the year, with no real potential for large or severe fires until we get into early, mid-Ju
- NewsThe Canadian Press
Inaccurate data on forest fuels may stoke B.C. wildfires, study finds
VANCOUVER — Wildfire fighting and forest management decisions are potentially being hampered by inaccurate government data that misrepresents forest fuel loads in British Columbia's Interior, a new study has found. The B.C. government says the provincial wildfire service is working with the study's lead author and others to close the data gap, which involves "mismatches" between remotely-sensed mapping, forest fuel classifications, and observations on the ground. "These mismatches make it diffic
- NewsThe Canadian Press
Gov. Abbott says Texas wildfires may have destroyed up to 500 structures
STINNETT, Texas (AP) — Wildfires may have destroyed as many as 500 structures in the Texas Panhandle, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said Friday, describing how the largest blaze in state history scorched everything in its path, leaving ashes in its wake. Texas officials warned that the threat was not yet over. Higher temperatures and stronger winds forecast for Saturday elevated worries that fires in the Panhandle could spread beyond the more than 1,700 square miles (4,400 square kilometers) alrea
- NewsThe Canadian Press
Texas Panhandle ranchers face losses and grim task of removing dead cattle killed by wildfires
SKELLYTOWN, Texas (AP) — First, the flames came storming across the vistas of the Texas Panhandle, burning through the grassy plains and scrub land of the region's cattle ranches. By Friday, ranchers faced a grim task: Search miles of scorched earth to dispose of the burned corpses of cattle. Others too badly burned and injured in this week's historic wildfires to survive will be euthanized. "We’re picking up deads today,” X-Cross-X Ranch operator Chance Bowers said as ranch hands used a bulldoz
- EntertainmentCBC
TV series about northern Sask. wildfires set for 2nd season
Wildfires ravaged much of Saskatchewan last summer, leaving first responders fighting to tame the flames of one of the most extreme wildfire seasons the province has ever seen.A film crew was on the ground in northern Saskatchewan, documenting the journey of firefighters and First Nation responders for the second season of the TV series Guardians of the North."The winds were high and you didn't know what you were gonna get from day to day," said Avery Legare, a fire base supervisor in La Ronge w
- NewsCBC
Should the N.W.T. hold a public inquiry into the 2023 wildfires? Some experts weigh in
As members of the N.W.T. Legislative Assembly prepare to vote Thursday on whether the territory should call a public inquiry last summer's wildfire response, some experts are also weighing in on the question. The former commissioner of a public inquiry in B.C. a decade ago said there would be many benefits to the N.W.T. holding one its own, looking at the past wildfire season — the biggest benefits being that it gives the public a chance to participate, and that it's conducted independently from
- NewsCBC
N.W.T. MLA's postpone vote on public inquiry into wildfires
N.W.T. MLAs voted Friday to postpone a motion into a public inquiry on the territory's wildfire response.Kieron Testart, MLA for Range Lake, and Sheryl Yakeleya, MLA for Dehcho, gave notice of the motion for the public inquiry on Tuesday. A news release issued that day said the motion was scheduled to be debated and voted on by the Legislative Assembly on Thursday — this was pushed back a day because of Yakeleya's absence, Testart said.When Testart read the motion Friday afternoon, Premier R.J S
- NewsCBC
2023 'holdover wildfires' producing smoke again: wildfire service
Wildfires that went dormant over the winter have once again moved above ground, producing visible smoke and smouldering, the B.C. Wildfire Service says.The service says these "holdover fires" are primarily in the Prince George Fire Centre, which covers the northeastern quadrant of the province, and are being aided by ongoing drought conditions in the region."A holdover fire is a fire that remains dormant and/or undetected for a considerable time after it starts," the service said in a bulletin,
