Latest news with #extremerisk
BBC News
a day ago
- Climate
- BBC News
Spain at 'extreme risk' of new wildfires as 14 blazes spread
Spain is at "extreme risk" of new wildfires, the country's prime minister has warned, as firefighters continue to battle 14 major a post on X, Pedro Sanchez said he expected Friday's conditions to be "very tough again" as he posted a graphic from the national weather agency Aemet warning of extreme fire risk in the north and west of the are expected to reach as high as 40C on the Spanish north coast, after more than 1,500 sq km (579 sq miles) were devastated by the flames and seven people died.A heatwave has scorched swathes of southeastern Europe this week, prompting wildfires in Spain, Portugal, Greece, France and the Balkans. Why wildfires are becoming faster and more furious In Galicia, several fires merged to form a huge blaze, forcing the closure of highways and rail services to the the largest operator of emergency aerial services in Europe, said it had registered a 50% increase from last year in flight hours dedicated to firefighting operations in Spain and Portugal so far this season, Reuters forecasts the heatwave will continue until Monday, with temperatures of up to 44C in some areas, as well as moderate winds. Wildfires are a common occurrence across southern Europe in the summer, but their severity can often be exacerbated by heatwave say such extremes are becoming more frequent and intense due to human-induced climate data shows that around 6,290 sq km (2,429 sq miles) of land has burnt across the bloc since the beginning of the year, with wildfires in Spain comprising about a quarter of the Civil Guard said it had arrested two men on suspicion of starting fires in Castille and León - taking the number of arson arrests to 10 since the start of weather conditions are currently favourable for wildfires, they can be sparked by barbecues, cigarette stubs or discarded bottles. Causing a wildfire is a criminal offence in Spain, even if is the fifth European nation to request assistance with fighting wildfires. In Greece, 100 sq km (38 sq miles) of land have burned since Tuesday. On Friday, firefighters were still tackling an active front on the Greek island of Chios, three days after the blaze began, with repair teams warning it could take more than a week to restore damaged infrastructure. Much of the island is still without electricity, with some water supply issues reported in certain areas.A very high wildfire risk has been issued for Friday for Attica, the Peloponnese, Central Greece, Thessaly, Central and Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, as well as the North and South Aegean, according to Greece's Civil Protection Bulgaria, Montenegro and Albania have also activated the EU's civil protection mechanism, which allows any country hit by a disaster - both in Europe and beyond - to request emergency assistance.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Climate
- CTV News
Windsor-Essex facing extreme fire risk amid heat wave and dry spell
Windsor is at a high risk of fire, according to the Canadian Wildland Fire Information System. CTV Windsor's Chris Campbell has more. Windsor-Essex is under an extreme fire danger rating as hot, dry conditions persist across the region, prompting warnings from meteorologists, fire officials, and public health authorities. A map from Natural Resources Canada (NCR) shows the fire danger in much of southern and southwestern Ontario, including Windsor, has increased as hot and dry conditions continue in the region. The map shows a portion of Windsor-Essex in red, which is 'extreme' and the highest risk of fire according to NRC. 'This summer's definitely been hot and the last 1 to 2 weeks, it's definitely been dry in the Windsor-Essex area,' said Steven Flisfeder, meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada. 'Temperature wise, hasn't been a record breaking by any means, but it has been very consistently hot.' According to Flisfeder, the area has not recorded any precipitation so far in August. 'No precip in August so far. Not a single day is recorded, not even a trace of precipitation at the Windsor airport. The last day that we did receive some rainfall was July 31, but nothing since then,' he said. The current forecast calls for temperatures in the low 30s through Wednesday, with a slight drop on Thursday before returning to the high 20s and low 30s for the weekend. 'Continuing that same pattern we've been seeing since about, say, the first couple weeks of July and on through into the middle of August,' Flisfeder said. John Smith, acting chief fire prevention officer with Windsor Fire and Rescue, said the prolonged dryness is creating dangerous conditions. 'You have the extraordinary dry spell right now that we're coming up against and it's going to be drying out the grass and all the vegetation around,' he said. 'I'm looking around the park here today, and even the trees are starting to drop a little bit from the excessive heat. So once they dry up, you get more chances of compressibility of that vegetation.' Smith noted that Windsor's open burn bylaw prohibits backyard fires without a permit. 'You have to have a permit anyways to do any kind of open air burning. So right now, you cannot do any kind of backyard burning even if you wish and it's a nice night out. We have to have a permit for that.' He added that fireworks are also regulated. 'Fireworks are only allowed to be set off on specific dates during the year and that's the day of Victoria Day and the day after,' he said. 'You've got Canada Day, the day before Canada Day and up to July 4 and New Year's Eve are the only days that consumer fireworks can be let off. And unless you have a display permit then they can be set off, it's different times of the day.' Smith also said residents have been calling with concerns about open flames during the dry conditions. 'It was a complaint that came in actually overnight about next door neighbour using a tiki torch. And even that's a probability, if that were to tip over and get the backyard going again, if it's a very dry backyard, you're going to have a fence possibly involved, a house, a structure, a shed that's going to continue and spread to other areas. So that's where we have to be careful with anything that's an open flame right now,' he said. The chief fire official must approve any permit for a backyard fire, Smith said, and many Windsor properties don't qualify. 'Chief fire official has to approve that permit and it's based on vegetation around the fire pit, distances to combustibles, to fences, to buildings. And right now, most Windsor properties will not meet that criteria,' he said. Dr. Mehdi Aloosh, medical officer of health for the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit, urged residents to take precautions during the heat. 'Make sure that we have access to a cooler space, to spend some time, be hydrated, be in the shade,' Aloosh said. 'So the message is still the same and there are resources in our community that people don't have access to A/C that they can have access to cooling centers, community centers, libraries, those are areas that people can spend time until these hot days go away.' He said signs of heat-related illness include 'dizziness, fatigue. You feel that you're thirsty, and then confusion is started. Muscle cramps.' Aloosh noted that heat and wildfire smoke together can increase health risks. 'The effect of wildfire and heat, it's more risky for population. Some studies shows that it increases mortality as a result of cardiovascular issues, respiratory issues. But at the moment, our quality score, air quality index is four. Its moderate risk,' he said. Meantime, the LaSalle Fire Service has declared an open-air fire ban effective immediately, citing dry conditions. All forms of open-air fires are prohibited in the Town of LaSalle until further notice. This includes campfires, chimineas, outdoor fireplaces, fire pits, brush fires and agricultural fires, etc. Officials said fines will be issued for any violations of the ban. 'Community safety is our main concern, and we are continually monitoring conditions,' said Fire Chief/Director of Fire Service, Ed Thiessen. 'We appreciate everyone's cooperation.' - With files from Dustin Coffman/AM800 News.
