As of Saturday morning, there were 426 active fires across Canada, 144 of them in Quebec. Wildfires are common in the Canadian summer, but their current extent and early arrival are unprecedented.
It is likely that rain help clear starting Sunday the smoky air of the forest fires in eastern Canada, but it is possible that it will not reach the flames that ravage the province of Quebec until days later, a government meteorologist said on Saturday. As of Saturday morning, there were 426 active fires across Canada, 144 of them in Quebec. Forest fires are common in the Canadian summer, but the current reach and early arrival are unprecedented.
Fires raging along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts have forced thousands of Canadians from their homes and the smoke has left people breathless. residents from Toronto to New York.
the federal meteorologist gerald cheng told reporters on Saturday thate showers were expected starting Sunday in southern Ontario and southwestern Quebec, which could help clear the smoke. The rain looks set to reach the northernmost parts of Quebec – where the biggest fires are burning – from Tuesday, but only 10-20mm is expected, Cheng said. “What worries us is that it doesn’t rain a lot”he pointed.
According to the authoritiess, on Monday there will be about 1,200 firefighters, including more than 100 French, fighting the flames in Quebec, a heavily forested province of 8.5 million people that occupies more territory than Germany, Spain and France combined. “In the coming days there is a risk that the situation will remain critical. But the arrival of the French firefighters will be of great help,” Quebec’s Minister of Forestry Maite Blanchette Vezina said on Friday.
more than 13,000 people have been evacuated from towns in northern Quebec.
Source: Ambito
