Canadian Wildland Fire Information System

National Wildland Fire Situation Report

Archived reports

Current as of: August 31, 2016

Current active fires
Uncontrolled Controlled Modified Response
3 56 121
2016
(to date)		 10-yr avg
(to date)		 % normal Prescribed U.S.
Number 4,832 6,121 78.9 35 40,248
Area
(ha)		 1,390,375 2,560,577 54 5,420 1,845,593

Fires of note

None

Interagency mobilization

The National Preparedness Level is 1. All provinces and territories are at level 1. Lightning caused 14% of this week’s fires. Resource mobilization is low for this time of year, with agencies sharing 6 aircraft and 15 km of hose, along with a variety of other equipment. The United States is at preparedness level 4, with large fires burning in California, Wyoming, Idaho, Washington, Utah, Montana, Oregon and Colorado.

Weekly Synopsis

In the last week, 86 new fires started, resulting in 28,540 ha burned. The majority of these fires occurred in British Columbia, Alberta, Parks Canada, and Ontario (52%, 12%, 8% and 6% respectively), while the majority of the area burned was in NWT and YT (79% and 14% respectively). National fire occurrence and area burned are below the 10-year average for this time of year, although Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia have had more fires than the 10-year average. Alberta’s area burned is about three times its 10-year average, but most of that occurred in the spring.

Fire Danger is low in most of Yukon, and low to moderate from Manitoba east, with a few pockets of high fire danger in southern Ontario and Nova Scotia. High to extreme fire danger persists across the NWT and the southern parts of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan.

In British Columbia, open burning and campfires are restricted in the Coastal fire zone. Open burning is prohibited in the Kamloops and Southeast fire zones. In Alberta, fire advisories are in place for some areas north of Edmonton, Parkland Beach (near Red Deer) and several areas south of Calgary. In Saskatchewan, there are some fire restrictions in some provincial parks. In Ontario, full fire bans are in effect in Missisagi, Sandbanks, Whitesand, and Windigo Bay Provincial Parks.

Prognosis

Another deep upper trough is gradually moving into western Canada, bringing showers and thundershowers to much of British Columbia, northern parts of Alberta and Saskatchewan, and along the 60th parallel. As this system moves slowly east, chances of rain increase in the southern Prairie Provinces and Manitoba by Friday (September 2). High pressure dominates the eastern half of Canada over the Labor Day weekend, although showers or thundershowers will likely move across western Ontario by Sunday and Monday (September 4-5). This moisture is diverted through northern Quebec, leaving the southern half and Atlantic Canada in warm and dry air. Low fire danger in eastern Canada will rise slightly with a few warm and dry days, although not to a level conducive to substantial fire starts. Fire activity is also hindered from a lack of lightning and the lengthening overnight period, although a few human-caused fires could still occur.

Current graphs

Note: For provinces, PC = Parks Canada

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