Latest news with #CIFFC
Gizmodo
5 days ago
- Health
- Gizmodo
Wildfire Smoke Chokes Canada and U.S., Triggering Air Quality Alerts
Canada is battling more than 700 active wildfires across the country, roughly two-thirds of which are burning out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center (CIFFC). Smoke billowing from the blazes has blanketed central Canada and the northern U.S., prompting widespread air quality alerts. Federal officials have issued air quality warnings across large swaths of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and western Ontario, where most of the uncontrolled fires are concentrated. Many cities across this region are suffering from 'high risk' or 'very high risk' air quality conditions that may persist through the end of the week, according to Environment Canada. In the U.S., the National Weather Service (NWS) has issued air quality alerts across the Midwest and Northeast. Several alerts cover entire states, including New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, Vermont, and New Hampshire. The Switzerland-based air quality monitoring database IQAir—which provides real-time air quality data—listed Minneapolis, Minnesota, as having some of the worst air pollution in the world over the weekend, the Associated Press reported. 'We've sort of been dealing with this, day in and day out, where you walk outside and you can taste the smoke, you can smell it,' Joe Strus, a meteorologist at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul NWS office, told the AP. Air quality alerts indicate that air is unhealthy for sensitive groups, including people with asthma, lung or heart disease, children, and older adults. That said, wildfire smoke can affect anyone's health, regardless of their age or preexisting conditions. Even in healthy people, inhaling fine particulate matter—the primary pollutant of concern in wildfire smoke—can temporarily reduce lung function, trigger pulmonary inflammation, and induce respiratory symptoms such as coughing and wheezing, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The NWS advised those under alerts to reduce their smoke exposure by limiting time outdoors. It doesn't appear that this public health hazard will dissipate anytime soon. Canada is currently experiencing one of its worst wildfire seasons on record, second only to 2023, when more than 6,000 fires torched roughly 37 million acres (15 million hectares) of land, according to Natural Resources Canada. So far this year, more than 4,000 fires have ravaged over 16.5 million acres (6.7 million hectares), CIFFC reports. In an update posted Monday, August 4, the agency stated that lightning strikes in Ontario and Alberta are igniting, or threatening to ignite, new fires. On Tuesday, August 5, eight more sparked to life, according to CIFFC. As Canada struggles to contain hundreds of out-of-control fires, the near-constant emergence of new blazes has taxed Canada's firefighting forces on a national scale. This situation 'is not unlike what we've been seeing in the last few years,' Monica Vaswani, a warning preparedness meteorologist at Environment Canada, told The Guardian. 'Unfortunately it's kind of becoming a little bit more the norm,' she said. The reason why comes down to rising global temperatures. 'Climate change is greatly increasing the flammability of the fuel available for wildfires because the trees, fallen trees, and underbrush are all so dry,' Yan Boulanger, research scientist in forest ecology at Natural Resources Canada, said in 2024. 'This means that a single spark, regardless of its source, can rapidly turn into a blazing inferno.' Experts have warned that Canada's 2025 season is already on track to rival 2023. As the planet warms, intensifying wildfire seasons will continue to smash records not just in Canada, but around the world. The only way to truly extinguish this ongoing crisis is to eliminate the fuel: greenhouse gas emissions.
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
Canada wildfires: 81 million Americans under air quality alerts as blazes continue
Hundreds of wildfires continued to burn across Canada and parts of the US on Tuesday sending smoke from the blazes across the region and reducing air quality in both countries. US air quality tanked from the Great Lakes region to the northeast, making skies hazy from Minneapolis to New York City and even prompting a ground stop at Boston's Logan international airport due to 'low visibility' on Monday. Detroit, New York City and Chicago continued to record some of the worst air quality in the world on Tuesday, according to IQAir, ranking fourth, 10th and 11th respectively. In Canada, Montreal and Toronto had seen significant improvements by Tuesday and no longer ranked in the top 20 for unhealthy air. About 81 million Americans remain under air quality alerts in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, northern Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Delaware and Maine, according to the National Weather Service. It is expected to improve for most areas by Wednesday. A high-pressure system parked over the midwest is trapping the smoke in place, causing air quality issues to linger for several days, according to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. There are 747 active wildfires currently burning across Canada, with 507 – over two-thirds – of them out-of-control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC), a non-profit organization that is owned by government agencies, including 165 in Manitoba, 134 in British Columbia, and 111 in Northwest Territories. Most of the current fires that are causing the poor, smoggy air quality and reduced visibility are connected to warmer-than-average temperatures, drought conditions, decreased levels of snowpack and low soil moisture, according to Natural Resources Canada. All of those factors are driven by global heating, NRC says. In the western US, a huge wildfire in central California – the Gifford fire – has raged through 72,460 acres in the Los Padres national forest and is only 7% contained, threatening hundreds of homes and so far injuring three people. Firefighters have been battling the blaze, which grew out of several smaller fires that erupted along State Route 166, affecting Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, since Friday. A warming and drying trend was expected to continue from Wednesday through the weekend, with temperatures up to 90F to 100F (32C to 38C) on Thursday and Friday, with increasing fire behavior, officials said. Red flag warnings remain in place for parts of Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Wyoming due to very dry conditions, low humidity and gusty winds, with western fires creating smokey skies from Los Angeles to San Diego and to Las Vegas.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
Canada wildfires prompt severe air quality alerts across country and US
Billowing smoke from hundreds of out-of-control wildfires – most of which are in the Canadian Prairies – have caused severe air quality alerts across Canada and the United States. Detroit, Michigan, and the Canadian cities of Montreal and Toronto, recorded some of the worst air quality in the world on Monday, according to a ranking by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company. More than 700 active wildfires are currently burning across Canada and about two-thirds of them are currently out-of-control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC), a non-profit organization that is owned by government agencies. One brush fire, in British Colombia, was reportedly caused when an osprey dropped a fish on to a power line, sparking a small blaze which was later extinguished. But most of the current fires that are causing the poor, smoggy air quality and reduced visibility are connected to warmer-than-average temperatures, drought conditions, decreased levels of snowpack and low soil moisture, according to Natural Resources Canada. All of those factors are driven by global heating, NRC says. Some others, including one discovered Thursday on the banks of Cameron Lake in British Columbia, were human-caused, according to officials. Monica Vaswani, a warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment Canada, said this year is shaping up to be a 'particularly bad wildfire season'. 'This is not unlike what we've been seeing in the last few years … unfortunately it's kind of becoming a little bit more the norm,' she said. Vulnerable populations, including the elderly, children and those with respiratory or heart issues have been advised to reduce time outdoors in Toronto and the surrounding municipalities. There is a risk for the general population as well and indoor activities are recommended, said Vaswani. So far this year, 6,625,375 sq metres of land in Canada have burned due to fires, which is about 82% higher than all of 2024, which then resulted in 2,785,140 sq metres burned, according to the CIFFC. The fires have also resulted in several evacuations across Canada in the last week. In northern Manitoba, a full evacuation order was issued for the Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation due to wildfires. More than 400 properties have been ordered to vacate as a result on the east coast of Vancouver Island – and the fire is a mere 90km north-west of Victoria, British Columbia. The Saskatchewan village of Pinehouse, located about 500km north of the city of Saskatoon, also was under an evacuation order this week. The largest fires in the country are currently across the provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, with several larger than 100,000 hectares. The smoke from those fires continues to drift down across the Canadian border with the United States. On Monday, air quality alerts were issued for Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, parts of Nebraska and regions in Illinois and Indiana. People in the eastern states of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine are also being advised by officials to limit outdoor activity due to the wildfires.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
Canada wildfires prompt severe air quality alerts across country and US
Billowing smoke from hundreds of out-of-control wildfires – most of which are in the Canadian Prairies – have caused severe air quality alerts across Canada and the United States. Detroit, Michigan, and the Canadian cities of Montreal and Toronto, recorded some of the worst air quality in the world on Monday, according to a ranking by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company. More than 700 active wildfires are currently burning across Canada and about two-thirds of them are currently out-of-control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC), a non-profit organization that is owned by government agencies. One brush fire, in British Colombia, was reportedly caused when an osprey dropped a fish onto powerline, sparking a small blaze which was later extinguished. But most of the current fires that are causing the poor, smoggy air quality and reduced visibility are connected to warmer-than-average temperatures, drought conditions, decreased levels of snowpack and low soil moisture, according to Natural Resources Canada. All of those factors are driven by global heating, NRC says. Some others, including one discovered Thursday on the banks of Cameron Lake in British Columbia, were human-caused, according to officials. Monica Vaswani, a warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment Canada, said this year is shaping up to be a 'particularly bad wildfire season'. 'This is not unlike what we've been seeing in the last few years … unfortunately it's kind of becoming a little bit more the norm,' she said. Vulnerable populations, including the elderly, children and those with respiratory or heart issues have been advised to reduce time outdoors in Toronto and the surrounding municipalities. There is a risk for the general population as well and indoor activities are recommended, said Vaswani. So far this year, 6,625,375 sq metres of land in Canada have burned due to fires, which is about 82% higher than all of 2024, which then resulted in 2,785,140 sq metres burned, according to the CIFFC. The fires have also resulted in several evacuations across Canada in the last week. In northern Manitoba, a full evacuation order was issued for the Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation due to wildfires. More than 400 properties have been ordered to vacate as a result on the east coast of Vancouver Island – and the fire is a mere 90km north-west of Victoria, British Columbia. The Saskatchewan village of Pinehouse, located about 500km north of the city of Saskatoon, also was under an evacuation order this week. The largest fires in the country are currently across the provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, with several larger than 100,000 hectares. The smoke from those fires continues to drift down across the Canadian border with the United States. On Monday, air quality alerts were issued for Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, parts of Nebraska and regions in Illinois and Indiana. People in the eastern states of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine are also being advised by officials to limit outdoor activity due to the wildfires.
CBS News
01-08-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Over 600 American firefighters battling Canadian wildfires; roughly 16 million acres burned
Wildfires continued to rage across Canada on Friday, with nearly three dozen new blazes, bringing the total number of active fires to 673. According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, there have been more than 3,700 fires this season, trailing only 2023 as the most severe ever, and scorching roughly 16 million acres. "It's an unfortunate reality," Shannon Graf, wildfire information officer for the Government of the Northwest Territories, lamented to WCCO News. "If we could stop the smoke we'd be stopping it here real quick." Many out-of-control fires are in the Northwest Territories, a massive expanse that borders Alaska. Hundreds of other blazes are raging in the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, just to the northwest of Minnesota. "We've got crews from out of the territory and from out of the country," Graf explained. "We've got helicopters, we've got airplanes. We've got crews on the ground. We've got incident management teams running all of these crews. Basically, we are working our people as much and as best we can while still keeping them healthy." More than 600 American firefighters have traveled to Canada this summer to help battle those wildfires, the U.S. Forest Service reported last month. Officials at the CIFFC said crews have also flown in from Mexico, Chile and Australia, among other nations.
