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More than 1,300 responders are mobilized to fight forest fires in Quebec.
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Published Jun 28, 2023 • Last updated 40 minutes ago • 3 minute read
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Rain that began to fall Monday is giving a helping hand to firefighters battling wildfires in the most critical sectors of Quebec, but it’s not enough to put out the fires, authorities note.
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Société de protection des forêts contre le feu (SOPFEU) reported 112 active fires Wednesday morning. Of this number, 76 are in the intensive zone, of which about 20 are considered uncontrolled. SOPFEU is assessing the impact the precipitation will have on the ground. It is expected to continue to rain throughout the day in certain parts of province.
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“If the rain falls in sufficient quantity, it allows SOPFEU staff to intensify their work on the ground and prevent the fires from starting again once the dry weather returns,” Katia Petit, Quebec associate deputy minister for civil protection, said Tuesday.
Julie Coupal, deputy director general of SOPFEU, said the rain should help reduce the intensity of the fires and their spread. However, some fires could pick up in intensity when the drier weather returns, she said.
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Coupal also warned on Tuesday that it is a colossal task. More than 2.8 million hectares have been affected by this year’s fires, including in the intense and northern zones.
“In my 26-year career, I had never seen so many hectares burned,” Coupal said.
Help from abroad
A hundred South Korean firefighters will join the ranks as of July 2, Coupal said. An agreement with Spanish and Portuguese firefighters expires at the end of the week.
SOPFEU hopes the Canadian Armed Forces will extend their assistance and has requested such additional resources as the rotation of staff from abroad.
France has renewed its aid by promising to deploy a new contingent of around 100 firefighters Wednesday, who will take over from those who have been demobilized recently.
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In total, more than 1,300 responders are mobilized to fight forest fires in Quebec.
Evacuees
Of the roughly 4,400 Quebec evacuees, a “small part of them” were expected to return home Tuesday, Petit said.
An evacuation notice was lifted Tuesday for residents of Villebon Lake sector of Val-d’Or. The Cree community of Mistissini also lifted its evacuation notice Tuesday. Approximately 3,800 members of the First Nation had to leave their homes to go to Quebec or Saguenay last week.
For the majority of evacuees, “it is still far too early to decide” on reintegration, Petit said. Some sectors must still be security, such as Route 113, which gives access to Lebel-sur-Quévillon, in Jamésie.
The fires near this municipality in northern Quebec, which is under a new evacuation order, are among SOPFEU’s priority interventions. The teams built mechanized stop lines to surround the last source of fire between Josselin Lake and Route 113.
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Special efforts are also targeting fires in the Senneterre, Normal, Lac Simon and Louvincourt sectors in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, as well as Chibougamau, Mistissini, Obedjiwan and Micoua.
In Chibougamau, municipal authorities indicated on social media Tuesday that the fires raging very close to the municipality had experienced “no significant progression” the day before. The municipality of Senneterre said on Facebook the “situation has been relatively stable for two days” and “the air quality is improving”.
Air quality
Canadian wildfires are continuing to send heavy clouds of smoke south, from Northern Ontario and Quebec, through both provinces and into the United States.
Environment Canada has issued special air quality statements for large areas of Ontario and Quebec, warning of high levels of air pollution due to the smoke.
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The agency says wildfire pollution levels can fluctuate over time and can vary depending on the location, but air quality is expected to improve for some areas on Thursday night.
Air quality warnings are also in effect in Chicago, Detroit and Toronto, which occupy three of the top four spots on Air-I-Q’s global ranking for poor air quality.
As of Wednesday morning, Dubai in the United Arab Emirates tops the list of major cities with a significant score of 411 — putting its air quality in the “Hazardous” category. Detroit ranks second, followed by Chicago, and Toronto in fourth, with an “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” rating of 159.
Some of the smaller communities in Southern Ontario are faring far worse, with Sarnia scoring 372, as of 3:30 a.m., a score that places the city not far behind Dubai. Air-I-Q updates its numbers hourly.
The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre’s website shows there are 487 active fires burning across the country this morning, with 253 of them classified as out of control.
Rainfall won’t be enough to extinguish Quebec wildfires, but will help
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