Drought Fuels Wildfire Concerns As Canada Braces For Another Intense Summer

"The 2023 wildfire season was historic and deadly in Canada. This summer could be more of the same."

"As widespread drought raises expectations for a repeat of last year’s ferocious wildfire season, response teams across Canada are grappling with the rapidly changing face of fire in a warming climate.

No longer quenched by winter, nor quelled by the relative cool of night, last summer’s wildfires burned an unprecedented 18.5 million hectares of land—more than seven times the historic average.

Canada’s warmest ever winter followed, with low to non-existent snowpack in many areas, and ongoing drought raising fears that this summer will see more of Canada’s forests and wildland urban interface go up in flames.

“The dry and historically warm winter we just experienced across Canada puts the country in a bad spot heading into wildfire season over the weeks and months ahead,” The Weather Network reported in March."

Gaye Taylor reports for Yale Climate Connections May 10, 2024.

SEE ALSO:

"Wildfire in Canada’s British Columbia Forces Thousands To Evacuate. Winds Push Smoke Into Alberta" (AP)

"Minnesota and Wisconsin See Air Quality Warnings From Canadian Wildfires" (New York Times)