Canadian wildfire smoke back AGAIN forcing thousands to evacuate as US fears dangerous air quality
- Nearly all of Fort Nelson’s 3,000 residents have fled their homes
- NOAA data shows the smoke is starting to drift south of the border
- The fire comes almost a year after Canada’s last devastating wildfire season
Wildfires have returned to Canada, with billowing smoke driving thousands of people from their homes and raising alarms about poor air quality in the United States.
The fire started in northeastern British Columbia on Friday and had nearly doubled in size by the start of the weekend. The fire smoldered just a few miles outside the city limits of Fort Nelson. By Sunday, the fire had reached more than 13,500 hectares.
Fort Nelson and the Fort Nelson Indian Reserve have a combined population of about 3,000 residents, most of whom have been evacuated, according to Mayor Rob Frayer.
Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows smoke beginning to drift into the U.S., with light to moderate coverage in Montana, the Dakotas and Minnesota.
These developments have raised concerns about a possible repeat of Canada’s 2023 wildfire season, which was the most destructive in the country’s history.
More than 6,500 fires burned nearly 71,000 square kilometers of land from the West Coast to the Atlantic provinces, and last June a blanket of smog covered New York City for three days, turning its iconic skyline orange.
A massive forest fire in British Columbia has scorched 4,200 hectares in the Canadian province and forced nearly 3,000 people from their homes
The smoke has raised concerns about poor air quality, with residents fearing a repeat of Canada’s 2023 wildfire season, which blanketed New York City in smog for three days.