Wildfires force thousands to flee communities across parts of Canada — see photos of the 'challenging' emergency

Yahoo

2 days ago

Wildfires have been burning out of control in parts of Canada, threatening several communities and forcing tens of thousands of people to evacuate their homes. The severe conditions, which led Manitoba and Saskatchewan to declare states of emergency, resulted in Canada recording it's worst air quality reading so far in 2025.
According to Environment Canada's recent data, "extreme" conditions — the highest level — are also being seen in parts of Alberta, northeastern British Columbia, the southern parts of the territories and western Ontario. The poor conditions are also posing a threat to northern states in the U.S.; North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and states around the Great Lakes are expected to get the highest smoke concentrations as the wildfires burn.
"As we head into the weekend, pray for rain," Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said Friday. "We haven't seen rain in the forecast yet. That could really help — sustained rainfall, in particular. But in the absence of that, the past few days have been very challenging, and that may continue."
The early start to the wildfire season has resulted in roughly 17,000 residents evacuating so far. Kinew ordered a province-wide state of emergency last week, telling reporters this is "the largest evacuation Manitoba will have seen in most people's living memory."
That includes the entire town of Flin Flon, an area of around 5,000 residents. "The only folks remaining on the ground are firefighters and folks in the office of the fire commissioner and RCMP, who are there to battle the blaze," Kinew said Friday.
"We do expect some very, very challenging conditions in Flin Flon and in the surrounding community."
In the latest update on Flin Flon, officials stated that the fire burning near the mining city has been contained to outside it's perimeter highway.
State of emrgency was also declared in Saskatchewan, where people are faced with a "very serious situation," according to Premier Scott Moe. Thousands have already evacuated their homes in the province and the region is in desperate need of rain.
Below, see some of the most eye-widening photos from across Canada where wildfires are causing havoc.