Smoke conditions persist in some communities across the N.W.T., as wildfire officials provide an update on the forest fire season. The territory has seen 131 forest fires so far this year, affecting 114,174 hectares of land. That’s slightly below the territory’s 10 year average, which is 175. Some regions are hotter and drier than usual, like the Beaufort Delta, so they’re seeing more fire activity, whereas other parts of the territory have had more wet conditions due to high water levels. The North Slave has had the most forest fires this year, with 42 in total, and 22 active fires. If you’ve noticed smoke in Yellowknife, it’s due to fires in the region which recently merged, said a spokesperson. A few forest fires have “exceeded suppression efforts,” said Richard Olsen, the territory’s wildfire operations manager, which means the fires are not actively being fought.
Two small communities nestled along Lower Arrow Lake in B.C.’s Southern Interior are now under evacuation orders. On Wednesday, the Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) expanded its evacuation order because of the Michaud Creek wildfire that’s burning along the west side of the lake. The fire is estimated to be 2,670 hectares in size and is located around 21 kilometres south of Edgewood. According to the BC Wildfire Service, “strong winds are expected to increase well into today and continue to drive aggressive fire behaviour in the interior, southern interior, and southeast region of the province.” The evacuation order now includes the small communities of Edgewood and Needles, and runs north to Whatshan Lake, for a total of 356 properties.
No new forest fires have been confirmed in the northeast region as of this afternoon, Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services stated in a release issued today. Currently, there are 10 active fires in the region, all of which are being observed. The fire hazard is low to moderate in most areas to the south and east of River Valley, as well as in most areas to the west and northwest of Greater Sudbury, while areas situated north and northwest of River Valley are showing a fire hazard ranging from moderate to high. Two small portions of the Cochrane sector are showing an extreme hazard this afternoon.
Turkey has mobilized and united in efforts to fight against wildfires that have wreaked havoc on swathes of the country’s south and Aegean region. People across the country are sending food aid to the disaster zones, while inhabitants at the scene of fires are carrying water to firefighters and aid to the victims. The blazes began in early July 28 in four separate locations, including the most destructive in the Manavgat district of the southern province of Antalya. The fires broke out almost in tandem across other Mediterranean provinces, then across some 40 provinces and districts in 50 hours. …among the helpers are people who have been evacuated from their houses due to fires. Firefighters are recommended to drink ayran, a cold savory yogurt-based beverage thought to be preventative against smoke poisoning.
GORNY ULUS, Russia — The little domed tents of the volunteer firefighters in the clearing of a Siberian forest can be hard to see — even from only a few steps away — because of the choking smoke. Their shovels and saws seem to be tiny tools against the vast blaze, like toy weapons brought to a war. …As of Monday, about 1.88 million hectares (4.6 million acres) of forest were burning in Russia — an area larger than the U.S. state of Connecticut. More than 5,000 regular firefighters are involved, but the scale is so large and the area is so enormous that 55% of the fires aren’t being fought at all, according to Avialesookhrana, the agency that oversees the effort. That means the volunteers, who take time off work and rely on their own money or nongovernmental funds, are a small but important addition to the overwhelmed forces.
