Tag Archives: forest fire

Alberta

12 homes were evacuated yesterday when the wind direction changed for the Bonneyville fire. Bonnyville declared a local state of emergency on Tuesday, which allows officials to call in the RCMP to secure roads and homes, if necessary. The Bonneyville fire grew to about 800 ha yesterday.

The fire near Grassland is still out of control and measures about 1,000 ha.

The fire near Lodgepole is currently being held.

Alberta has issued a fire ban for most of the forested areas of the province.

Yesterday marked the 1 year anniversary of the devastating wildfire that destroyed nearly one third of Slave Lake.

Manitoba

Fires in southeastern Manitoba are continuing to grow under fierce wind conditions.

British Columbia sent 41 firefighting personnel to Manitoba yesterday to help Manitoba’s crews. two water bombers have arrived from Quebec. Two other water bombers have arrived from Minnesota.

Because of an increase in the number of fires and fire activity, the Province of Manitoba is requesting additional resources through the Canadian Interagency Fire Fighting Centre. The centre allows for the mutual sharing of resources between B.C. and other jurisdictions.

Campfires have been banned in all provincial parks in Manitoba’s southeast. Back country travel is restricted to permit holders only.

Ontario

Many new fires have started across northern Ontario this week.

“So far this season, we’ve had very dry conditions and today we’ve had almost double the fires we had last year at this time,” says Lindsay Marks, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources northeast fire information officer. “We had an earlier spring this year. The snow melted so fast and it ran off rather than infiltrated into the ground. So the ground was that much drier. And we’re experienced little precipitation.”

The Northeast Fire Region is now a restricted fire zone due to extreme fire hazard.

Nova Scotia

In Nova Scotia a brush fire near Stewiacke led to one evacuated house, and a couple more on standby yesterday.  Two helicopters attacked the fire from the air while crews made progress from the ground.  60 volunteer firefighters helped contain the fire.  There is no word yet on the cause of the fire.

Sources:
Alberta wildfire prompts evacuation of 12 homes (CBC)
B.C. crews to assist Manitoba’s firefighting efforts (Government of British Columbia)
Home evacuated in Colchester County brush fire (CBC)
Fire crews watch for flare-ups near Stewiacke (CBC)
Situation Report – May 15, 2012 (CIFFC)
Forest fire threatens homes near Bonnyville (Calgary Herald)
Fire Update May 15, 2012 (Government of Manitoba)
Short winter might translate into long forest fire season — official (The Sault Star)
Fire fight gets backup help (Winnipeg Free Press)

Alberta’s fire crews are battling 3 out of control wildfires today.

“Once again, we are reminded of the devastating impact of wildfires on Alberta’s communities. Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected, and we are thankful for the hard work of those currently fighting these wildfires. The Government of Alberta will continue to update relevant information as soon as it is available. Many areas of Northern Alberta are still at extreme risk for wildfire – this is a reminder for everyone to be alert, respect fire bans, and be smart and careful when enjoying Alberta’s forests.”

~ Diana McQueen, Alberta’s Minister of Environment and Sustainable Resource Development

The 3 fires are:

• near Grassland – over 1,000 ha in size.  Currently 50% contained
• near Bonnyville – 650 ha
• near Lodgepole – about 360ha – Lodgepole residents have an advisory to prepare to evacuate with 1 hour of notice. Hwy. 620 closed to all traffic

All the fires are burning near communities and roads – which means they were likely caused by people.

Alberta indicated to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre today that they were “able to provide resources for all existing fires. Providing resouces to an new escape fire will be an issue.” “May require assistance if we get escaped fires today.”

Learn more:
Current fire map for Alberta (.pdf)
3 wildfires burn out of control in Alberta (CBC)
Follow Alberta Wildfire Info on Facebook

A quick check on the start of the forest fire season.

19,260 fires have been recorded in Canada so far in 2012, burning 161,169 hectares.

British Columbia

Starting on Tuesday, the Kamloops Fire Centre in British Columbia will be restricting the size of open fires to prevent human caused wildfires.  The Kamloops Fire Centre crews have already responded to wildfire incidents covering approximately 300 hectares since April 1st. (read more)

BC’s Northwest Fire Centre is also urging caution for burning this weekend due to the forecast for warmer weather and gusty winds.

550 hectares in BC have been burned so far this year.

Visit British Columbia’s Wildfire Management Branch

Alberta

A year after fire ravaged Slave Lake, northern Alberta is again bone-dry this spring.  Alberta’s fire officials say the trees and grass haven’t greened up yet, humidity is low, and winds are strong and gusty.

In the Lesser Slave Lake region, there are 84 firefighters stationed with 27 support staff, 6 heavy equipment groups, 14 helicopters, and 2 air tanker groups ready to tackle any new wildfire.

39 fires are currently burning in Alberta, including one that is out of control, located about 20 kms from the community of Fox Creek.

366 hectares have been burned in Alberta so far this season.

View Alberta’s Wildfire Situation Reports

To review the current fire bans in Alberta, visit http://AlbertaFireBans.ca

Saskatchewan

45 fires have been reported in Saskatchewan this year burning 423 hectares.

Over the last 24 hours, 2 new fire were reported, and 2 were declared out.

View Saskatchewan’s Current and Past Fire Activity

Manitoba

Showers and warmer temperatures have helped green up conditions in southern Manitoba, reducing the fire danger.  Warm temperatures in the forecast will likely rapidly increase the fire danger, particularly in Eastern Manitoba, into next week.

61 fires have been reported in Manitoba so far, burning 4,221 hectares.

View Manitoba’s Fire Update Report

Ontario

There are currently 2 fires burning in Ontario, one of which is labelled as out of control.

Burning conditions remain high to extreme in Northeastern Ontario.  Northwestern Ontario is expecting a cold front today that will be bringing rain and lower temperatures.

Crews in Ontario are currently completing their mandatory training. All crews will be online by May 14th.

Ontario has recorded 170 fires so far this year, burning 355 hectares.

View Ontario’s Current Fire Situation

Quebec

Quebec has 1 fire currently burning.

166 fires have been recorded in Quebec so far this year, burning 178 hectares.

Newfoundland and Labrador

One fire is currently burning in Newfoundland and Labrador.

24 fires have been recorded so far this year, burning 1,464 hectares.

Newfoundland and Labrador took delivery of a new water bomber in April.  The aircraft is a Bombardier 415.  It is the 4th to be delivered of the 4 new planes the province ordered in 2009.  The new planes are now in service alongside two CL-215 waterbombers and a spotter plane (read more).

New Brunswick

There was a forest fire earlier this week near Salisbury, New Brunswick.  The fire started behind a home and burned a few sheds before escaping into the bush.  A water bomber was used to attack the fire.

So far this year, 223 fires in New Brunswick have burned 319 hectares.

Visit New Brunswick’s Forest Fire Watch

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia has recorded 196 fires this year, burning 666 hectares.

Visit Nova Scotia’s Wildfire Management Group

Prince Edward Island

PEI has recorded 5 fires this year, burning 9 hectares.

Visit PEI’s Wild Fire Information website

Yukon Territory

The Yukon has had 2 fires in 2012, burning 1.2 hectares. Both fires were human caused.

View Yukon’s Wildland Fire Management page

Download Yukon’s new Operation Wildfire colouring book!

National

View the Current National Wildland Fire Situation Report from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre Inc.

Effective Monday, April 2, 2012, at 12 noon, the size of open fires will be restricted within the Cariboo Fire Centre in British Columbia to help prevent human-caused wildfires and protect the public.

Specifically, this will prohibit:

• The burning of any waste, slash or other materials (piled or unpiled) at a size larger than one metre by one metre.
• The burning of more than two open fires of any size at the same time.
• Stubble or grass fires of any size over any area.

The prohibition will remain in effect until Sept. 30, 2012, or until further notice.

This prohibition covers all B.C. parks, Crown lands and private lands, but it does not apply within the boundaries of a local government that has forest fire prevention bylaws in place and is serviced by a fire department. Before lighting any fire, residents should check with local civic authorities regarding any current prohibitions.

Anyone found in contravention of an open fire prohibition may be issued a ticket for $345, or, if convicted in court, may be fined up to $100,000 and sentenced to one year in jail. If the contravention causes or contributes to a wildfire, the person may be subject to a penalty of up to $10,000 and be ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs.

The Cariboo Fire Centre is one of six wildland fire centres operated by the B.C. Forest Service’s Wildfire Management Branch, and covers an area of about 10.3 million hectares, stretching as far south as Loon Lake to just north of Quesnel at the Cottonwood River. From east to west, the boundaries stretch from the western edge of Wells Gray Provincial Park to the eastern boundary of Tweedsmuir Provincial Park.

The Cariboo Fire Centre is divided into two main climatic belts: the western dry belt and the eastern wet belt. The dry belt ranges from sagebrush with lone Douglas Firs to thinly grassed meadows to well-spaced lodgepole pine, Douglas Fir and Spruce. The eastern wet belt has extensive cedar, hemlock, spruce and balsam. Between these two areas there is a transition zone, roughly between the Fraser and Highway 97. This area has similar vegetation in the valleys to the adjoining part of the Kamloops Region, with well-spaced Douglas fir and some areas of ponderosa pine, with some open grass areas. This area has a milder climate due to the more southerly latitude and lower elevations in the deeper valley bottoms.

For the latest information on fire activity, conditions and prohibitions in British Columbia, visit the Wildfire Management Branch website: http://www.bcwildfire.ca

2011 was a busy fire season for Ontario.

Ontario experienced 1,330 fires affecting 632,533 hectares.

Much of the area burned in Ontario in 2011 was due to a handful of very large fires. In fact, 2011 saw the largest fire recorded in Ontario history—Sioux Lookout 70 at 141,000 hectares. Another fire, Sioux Lookout 35, reached 112,000 hectares to become the eighth-largest fire on record. These two fires alone accounted for approximately 40 per cent of the total area burned. This is the first time since 1980 that Ontario has had two individual fires of greater than 100,000 hectares in the same season.

As an exceptional fire season draws to a close, Ontario offers its sincere thanks to all the men and women who assisted in 2011. Successfully addressing the many challenging fires this season required teamwork, flexibility and tireless effort. All personnel, whether they were from Ontario, other Canadian provinces and territories, Parks Canada or the United States, demonstrated these qualities. The final fires of 2011 will soon smoulder out but the bonds of friendship and cooperation between Ontario and its friends and neighbours continue on.

Read more: Ontario’s 2011 Forest Fire Summary (Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources)

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment, Wildfire Management Branch has released the results of a study completed on a wildfire, the “Nisbet fire”, that occurred near the City of Prince Albert in the spring of 2010.

“The Nisbet fire serves as a reminder of the risk wildfire poses to anyone living near or within forested areas,” Environment Minister Dustin Duncan said. “Thankfully through the combined efforts of provincial and municipal agencies and the implementation of some FireSmart practices, property damage was kept to a minimum and no one was injured or killed.”

The Nisbet fire started in a subdivision on the outskirts of the city in the early afternoon of May 17, 2010, and grew to 298 hectares in size within a three hour period. The fast moving fire resulted in a full evacuation of the area.

The study examines the factors that surround the effects of a wildfire in the wildland urban interface (the zone of transition between unoccupied land and human development) and the severity of risk to properties located in forested areas. It also provides 11 recommendations including: the need for a community wildfire protection plan; the establishment of a defensible space; and raising wildland urban interface property owners’ awareness of FireSmart principles so that they may be better prepared for a wildfire event.

The FireSmart recommendation in particular is supported by the proactive fuel management work of one home owner in the area of the wildfire, which played a significant role in preventing the fire from crossing a road and moving toward another subdivision.

“Thinning out nearby trees, removing dead trees and undergrowth, and using fire resistant building materials can significantly reduce the danger from wildfire,” Wildfire Education and Prevention Co-ordinator Larry Fremont said. “If a fire approaches your property it will burn less aggressively and fire crews will have a better chance of controlling the fire and protecting your property.”

Nisbet Fire Case Study: Read in full [.pdf].

A wildfire on the west side of Okanagan Lake led to the evacuation of at least 550 residents and campers in British Columbia last night.

Strong down slope winds and aggressive fire behaviour hampered fire fighters who battled the blaze. The evacuations were ordered last night when firefighters and helicopters were unable to contain the fire.

Air tankers placed retardant this morning along the fire perimeter to slow the fire’s growth. Roads in the area are also being used as containment lines. Helicopters were utilized today to slow the spread of the fire and assist ground crews in fire guard construction and extinguishing hot spots.

This afternoon, the fire had grown to 39 hectares. The fire is believed to be caused by humans.

The Evacuation Order remains in effect for approximately 106 homes in Traders Cove, Bear Creek Forest Service Road, and visitors to Bear Creek Provincial Park.

Hot, dry conditions are expected to continue throughout the week and the public is reminded a campfire ban remains in effect in the Merritt and Lillooet fire zones. An open burning ban also remains in effect throughout the Kamloops Fire Centre.

An Evacuation Alert remains in effect for residents living along Westside Road, south of Bear Creek Provincial Park and north of Sailview Bay (901 Westside Road). These residents should be prepared to leave their homes on short notice and should make appropriate precautions in the event the evacuation area is extended.

The B.C. Wildfire Management Branch wishes to remind people that you can report a wildfire or unattended campfire by calling *5555 on your cellular phone or toll-free at 1-800 663-5555.

For the latest information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions, road closures and air quality advisories, go to http://www.bcforestfireinfo.gov.bc.ca.

You can also follow the latest B.C. wildfire news on Twitter at http://twitter.com/BCGovFireInfo or Facebook http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo.

Source: Government of British Columbia

20 new fires were reported in the province of Ontario on Thursday August 18, most of them caused by lightning in both the northeast and the northwest regions of Ontario. Numerous lightning fires showing up are consistent with recent precipitation being mostly scattered and localized; there are dry pockets of high hazards throughout the province.

So far this year 953 fires have burned a total of 618,187 hectares of forest in Ontario.

There are 111 fires actively burning in the province today. Fire activity will be moderate to high as wind speeds increase with the passage of another cold front. Extensive lightning will continue in the Northwest and make its way across the province. Current fires are reporting depths of burn between 10 to 20 centimeters into the ground.

Ontario appreciates the support of resources from other parts of Canada. Assistance, in the form of fire fighters, equipment and aircraft has come from several provinces and Parks Canada. Over the weekend close to 250 fire fighters and overhead staff are scheduled to return home and currently, there are no plans to recruit more out of province resources. Today 433 fire personnel from other provinces are helping with Ontario’s fire fighting effort.

Ontario has arranged for Manitoba and Quebec to be available for quick strike water bombing if help is needed over the next several days. Essentially, quick strike is when another province’s water bomber drops water on Ontario fires near the provincial border and then returns to their home base.

Read more:
Current Fire Situation – August 19, 2011 (Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources)

The Alberta government is helping municipalities located in the province’s Forest Protection Area reduce the risk of wildfires to their communities.

Alberta’s more than 300 at-risk forest-area communities can apply for grants of up to $50,000 to support programs under the FireSmart community grant program. Over the past six years, the provincial program has provided more than $1.5 million to the communities.

“Wildfires can have a devastating impact on communities, as we saw earlier this year in Slave Lake,” said Mel Knight, Minister of Sustainable Resource Development. “One of the best ways to reduce the risk posed by wildfire is to be prepared through the FireSmart program. This funding will support those kinds of critical FireSmart projects and help provide proactive planning at the municipal level.”

Municipalities, municipal districts, counties, Metis Settlements and registered non-profit societies located within the Forest Protection Area are eligible to apply for FireSmart community grants. The funding can be used to support FireSmart planning, public education, on-the-ground FireSmart initiatives, emergency planning, and other eligible projects.

The Forest Protection Area encompasses much of the forested area in the northern half of Alberta, and south along the Eastern Slopes. A map of the Forest Protection Area is available at http://srd.alberta.ca/Wildfire/WildfireMaps/documents/SRD_Areas_8x11.pdf

Applications are being accepted until September 6. More details about the program and applications are available at www.srd.alberta.ca.

Source: Government of Alberta

Fighting Ontario’s forest fires has already cost about $107 million this year.

This number is expected to increase over the next few weeks, with the end of the fire season in October.

“Because of the nature of this year’s fire situation, Ontario has borrowed a significant amount of resources, such as firefighters, equipment and aircraft from other provinces and states,” provincial fire information officer Art Osborne said. “Ontario will eventually pay for those borrowed resources and those costs have been factored into our cost estimates to date.”

Ontario’s Forest Fire Update

Fire behaviour conditions were low on Friday August 12 and will remain moderate for the period of August 13-14. Light winds will limit the spread of any new fires. Unseasonably warm temperatures and falling humidity is expected in the latter part of the weekend which may cause a spike in fire arrivals during the early part of the coming week.

Significant resources remained engaged on large fires within the province. Considerable movement of out of province staff is now taking place. Fire fighters (99 staff) returned to British Columbia on August 12. A new contingent of 98 personnel from British Columbia are scheduled to arrive Saturday August 13, while 100 crew members from eastern Canada are departing on the same date. Previously, an additional three 20-person crews from Quebec and Nova Scotia were slated to arrive on August 14 but this request has now been cancelled.

Ontario remains extremely grateful to all the men and women from within the province and from other jurisdictions who have assisted during this challenging fire season so far.

Sources:
Fire by the dollars (TbNewsWatch)
Current Fire Situation (Government of Ontario)