Quebec could be short of tanker pilots to fight wildfires that will soon have more than 15,000 evacuees within a week.
“The more time passes, the greater the challenges for the pilots and mechanics,” said Prime Minister François Legault on Wednesday morning.
He reminded that pilots had to take a break after a certain number of flight hours and that the devices had to be checked. “Currently there is no shortage of drivers, but after a week there will certainly be challenges,” he warned.
The head of government took stock of the wildfires raging in Quebec. The situation on the north coast has resolved, but Mr Legault remains concerned about North du Quebec and Abitibi, where evacuations of the town of Senneterre have begun.
A total of 11,400 people have had to evacuate their homes, “but we are considering adding another 4,000” by evacuating the Cree community of Mistissini in north-du-Quebec, the prime minister said. Quebec is also keeping an eye on the town of Chapais, where teams are working on an evacuation plan to Saint-Félicien.
“At the moment we don’t expect any significant rain before next Monday evening,” Mr Legault said. He therefore said it was better to be “realistic” and not think about returning home for the evacuees for at least “five or six days”.
In addition to the Prime Minister, the director of the Provincial Center for the Protection of Forests from Fires (SOPFEU), Luc Dugas, stated that he had never faced such a situation in his 23-year career. The fires have so far devastated 460,000 hectares of forest.
“In the history of SOPFEU – in the last 50 years – the worst year, we have it behind us at this point in time,” emphasized the Minister for Natural Resources and Forests, Maïté Blanchette Vézina. “It’s a situation we’ve never experienced before. »
lack of weapons
In an exchange with the Prime Minister, Luc Dugas from SOPFEU expressed his concern about the lack of human resources to fight the fires.
“It’s going well in the short term, but it’s going to be problematic in the long term because they [les pilotes] will reach their maximum service time. “The State Air Service has failed to recruit all the pilots required for its mission,” he said.
But even in the private sector, “there aren’t many pilots,” admitted Mr. Legault. 11 of SOPFEU’s 13 air tankers are currently in use. A Yellowknife company provided two more aircraft, while an American company loaned four.
SOPFEU employs 520 people on land. “That’s 520 ‘Capped Boots’ in the field,” summarized Mr. Dugas. There are also 150 soldiers in the forest.
With help from New Brunswick, France, the United States, Portugal, Spain and Mexico, the government wants to increase that number to 1,200 people, Mr Legault said.
“With the current staff we can cover about 40 fires, but it’s 150,” he recalls.
The Prime Minister also announced that his government was working on a financial compensation program for evacuees. The goal is to “cover any extraordinary expenses you’ve incurred,” he said.
He also said he follows public health work on air quality. “We’re told the risks are limited, but people with lung or asthma problems are better off staying at home with the windows closed,” he explains.
Ottawa is ready to help
German Defense Minister Anita Anand said Wednesday that her government is ready to send more troops, including plane pilots, if Quebec wants it.
“We have capacity here in Canada. We continue to explore these opportunities to support our armed forces [armées pour] Forest fires,” she said at a news conference.
In addition, around 300 soldiers will be sent to the north coast, in particular to ensure logistics and the supply of food to the population. A naval reserve ship, the HMCS Jolliet, serves as the base of operations.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed that Canada “needs to think about how to prepare for this new reality” in which extreme weather events are likely to become more frequent and costly.
With Boris Proulx