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Fire, fumes and fear in Western Canada: What you need to know
The Canadian Press and Globe staff

This article was published more than 8 years ago. Some information may no longer be current.

In parts of B.C., the fires have blotted out the sun and rained ash from the sky. In Saskatchewan, they’ve sent thousands fleeing their homes and brought hundreds of military personnel to keep the blazes under control. Across Western Canada, wildfire season is taking a devastating toll this summer. Here’s what you need to know.

Smoke from wildfires in the B.C. Interior blankets Vancouver’s Lions Gate Bridge on July 5. (Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press)

Hashtags to follow: #SKfire, #ABfire, #BCwildfire

B.C.: Smoke in the air

Metro Vancouver issued an air-quality advisory on Sunday as wildfires in the surrounding area brought a smoky haze to the city. People with chronic medical conditions are advised to forgo strenuous exercise until the advisory is lifted.

The B.C. Wildfire Service says gusty winds and drought conditions are hampering efforts to contain dozens of wildfires in the province. Officials say the conditions have led to “significant growth” of some fires and forced crews to pull back from fighting some of the fires due to safety concerns.

Evacuation orders are being issued in a number of communities due to fires in the Kootenay and Central Okanagan districts, as well as the Port Hardy area.

(Where the fires are: B.C.’s wildfire warnings)

A fire crew battles a blaze in the La Ronge area in northern Saskatchewan on July 4. (Government of Saskatchewan/The Canadian Press)

Saskatchewan: Soldiers on the ground

As of Monday morning, there were 112 active fires in the province. On the weekend, close to 1,000 military personnel were being deployed to help contain the wildfires, which have forced more than 5,000 people from the La Ronge area and overwhelmed the nearby Lac La Ronge and Montreal Lake First Nations.

Premier Brad Wall said Saturday that he’d spoken on the phone earlier in the day with Prime Minister Stephen Harper about the possible need for military help, and that Mr. Harper had been “accommodating” to such a request when it was officially made.

Flames from a forest fire approach the airport outside the town of La Ronge, Sask., on July 5. (Prince Albert Fire Department/Reuters)

Provincial officials say the amount of land that’s burning in Saskatchewan this year is around 10 times what’s normal. Steve Roberts with the wildfire management branch of the environment ministry said over the last five years, 30,000 hectares burn annually in high-priority zones. He said 300,000 hectares are burning in those zones this year.

(Where the fires are: Saskatchewan’s wildfire warnings)

Alberta: Risks and refuge

Evacuees from the La Ronge have found refuge at the Canadian Forces base in Cold Lake, Alta., but elsewhere, Albertans are grappling with wildfires of their own.

Hundreds of residents in northern Alberta have been put on evacuation alert in the past week due to wildfires. About 200 people from the North Tallcree First Nation left their homes on Thursday when fires came to within five kilometres of the community.

(Where the fires are: Alberta’s wildfire warnings)

The El Nino factor

This spring, firefighters deployed weeks ahead of normal to combat rural wildfires in Western Canada, and experts were blaming El Nino for accelerating wildfire activity across the region.

The natural phenomenon itself, which cycles every two to seven years, involves a reversal of winds and currents that moves warm waters across the Pacific, altering the atmosphere to change weather patterns. Rather than create above-average temperatures, however, El Nino tends to reduce precipitation, Kerry Anderson, a fire research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service, told The Canadian Press in May. Snowfall also melted weeks to a month ahead of schedule because of El Nino, he said.