Canadian wildfires, which have already displaced tens of thousands of people from their homes and even leapfrogged a lake in gale force winds, continue to spread at an alarming rate, with no signs of stopping.
Hundreds of fires, currently classified as “out of control” and mostly covering more than 1,000 hectares, are raging across the North American country, official trackers show.
The Canadian Wildland Fire Information System (CWFIS) says that while hundreds of fires that broke out in the past 24 hours are now “under control,” at least twice that number have been lit to replace them.
It comes after horrific wildfire scenes in Maui, Hawaii, where 111 people have been reported dead and hundreds are still missing – and locals from Lahaina told the death toll was underestimated and the reality is at least 480.
Local residents said the situation was so dire that morgues had run out of body bags.
Canadian wildfires, which have already displaced tens of thousands of people from their homes and even leapfrogged a lake in gale force winds, continue to spread at an alarming rate, with no signs of stopping
Hundreds of fires, currently classified as “out of control” and mostly covering more than 1,000 hectares, are raging across the North American country, official trackers show
In one of the hardest-hit areas of West Kelowna, British Columbia, 43-mph winds fanned flames across Lake Okanagan, destroying several properties along the way.
A local state of emergency was declared in Kelowna after fires forced an evacuation in the Clifton neighborhood on Friday morning.
Over the past 24 hours, the city’s fires have increased in size by a factor of 100 as they spread from the north-west of the city. They have now burned 15,000 acres, according to the BC Wildfire Service.
Some of the hills around the city glowed in the dawn light after wildfires that have been burning since Tuesday leaped across Lake Okanagan and spread to parts of Kelowna.
“We fought hard last night to keep our community safe,” West Kelowna Fire Chief Jason Brolund told reporters on Friday. “Night turned into day with the orange glow of clouds and fire.”
Videos and photos from the area show apocalyptic scenes.
Daytime shots show burning houses and forests under an amber sky filled with dense clouds of choking smoke.
In other videos, the skyline is barely visible as smoke pours from every direction as people huddle along the roadside in West Kelowna, watching hopelessly as their hometown burns.
In the same region, firefighters can be seen fighting monster fires that outshine their water hoses.
More than 2,400 shelters have been evacuated, officials said, and thousands more are on alert to leave without notice if necessary.
In one of the hardest-hit areas of West Kelowna, British Columbia, 43-mph winds fanned flames across Lake Okanagan, destroying several properties along the way
Some of the hills around the city glowed in the dawn light after wildfires that have been burning since Tuesday leaped across Lake Okanagan and spread to parts of Kelowna
The Canadian Wildland Fire Information System (CWFIS) says that while hundreds of fires that broke out in the past 24 hours are now “under control,” at least twice that number have been lit to replace them
Similar scenes occurred near Yellowknife, the capital of the Northwest Territories, where more than 20,000 people were ordered to evacuate their homes.
“Out of control” fires threaten to cut access to the only highway outside the city, and officials have warned that without the much-needed downpour over the weekend, the blaze would reach the city.
Evacuation flights also took off from Yellowknife Airport as residents of the regional capital were given until noon Friday to depart.
Rescue workers erected firebreaks, installed sprinklers and water cannons and deployed fire retardants to prevent the blaze from reaching the city — which remains a real possibility in the coming days, officials said.
Strong northerly winds could drive the flames toward the only road leading away from the fire, officials warned, which is clogged with long motorcades.
Northwest winds will drive the fire “in directions we don’t want” over the next two days, said Mike Westwick, the Northwest Territories fire information officer.
In a wider area, 6,800 people in eight other communities were also forced to evict their homes, including the small community of Enterprise, which was largely destroyed.
Ten planes departed Yellowknife Thursday with 1,500 passengers and 22 other planes are expected to depart Friday with 1,800 more passengers.
Northwest winds will drive the fire “in directions we don’t want” over the next two days, said Mike Westwick, the Northwest Territories fire information officer
Around 65 percent of the Northwest Territories’ 46,000 residents are expected to be evacuated
Experts say climate change has exacerbated the wildfire crisis as it comes after much of Canada experienced unusually dry conditions
“I want to make it clear that the city is not in immediate danger and there is a safe way for residents to get out of the city by road and air,” Shane Thompson, a government minister for the territories, said at a news conference.
“Without rain, it’s possible that (the fire) will reach the outskirts of town by the weekend.”
“We are all tired of the word ‘unprecedented’ but there is no other way to describe this situation in the Northwest Territories,” Prime Minister Caroline Cochrane wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The infernos, which mark the latest chapter in a terrible summer for wildfires in Canada — the worst wildfire season on record — also threaten to send huge clouds of toxic smog across the United States, echoing similar scenes earlier in the summer.
An official forecast map shows smoke is expected to blow across the Southeast and across the Midwest into the eastern United States throughout Friday.
Around 65 percent of the Northwest Territories’ 46,000 residents are expected to be evacuated.
Firefighters cut vegetation to create firebreaks, set up sprinklers and started intentional fires to eliminate fuel before the larger blaze approaches, the fire department said.
Experts say climate change has exacerbated the wildfire crisis as it comes after much of Canada experienced unusually dry conditions.
Drought and high temperatures have contributed to the number and intensity of this year’s fires.