Archived reports

• Data courtesy of the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC).
• Check the Air Quality Health Index for air quality in your area.

Priority fires

Alberta: HWF030 – Paskwa Fire, near Fox Lake is estimated 16,400 ha in size and currently listed as out of control. SWF057/063/064 – Grizzly Complex is estimated 8,136/56,461/19,024 ha in size and currently listed as out of control. GCX-011-23 – Sturgeon Lake Complex - SE of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation is estimated 3,765/1,189 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. WCU001/WCU002 and EWF035 – Deep Creek Complex across Parkland and Yellowhead Counties is estimated 9,898/2,400/5,027 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. RCU005 – Brazeau County/Drayton Valley is estimated 3,500 ha in size and currently listed as out of control. HWF036 – Rainbow Lake is estimated 17,399 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. SWF-059-062, SWF070 – Nipsi Complex located approximately 2km from Whitefish First Nation is estimated 1,210/15,880/6.9/0.01/6.5 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. GCU003 – County of Grande Prairie Wildfire - approximately 10km S of Grande Prairie is estimated 1,500 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. GWF018 Cleardale Fire located in Clear Hills County is estimated 8,500 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. LCU003/LWF090 Athabasca wildfire is estimated 2,000 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. RWF031/039/030/034/040 Pembina Complex near Edson and O’Chiese First Nation is approximately 77,920/216/0.01/64,575/2,200 in size and is currently listed as out of control. PWF038/SWF068 – Kimiwan Complex near Peavine Metis Settlement is estimated 6,219/23,706 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control. WWF023 Eagle Wildfire near Fox Creek is estimated 21,568 ha in size and is currently listed as out of control.

British Columbia: G80220 – Boundary Lake Wildfire, east of Fort St. John, estimated at 5,900 ha in size and currently listed as out of control. G80223 – Red Creek estimated 2,900 ha in size and currently listed as out of control. G30210 – Teare Creek east of McBride, estimated 1,100 ha in size and currently listed as being held.

Saskatchewan: 23LX-SHAW Southeast of Dillon estimated 5,244 ha in size and currently listed as out of control.

Interagency mobilization

Canada is at national preparedness level 4, Significant wildland fire activity is occurring in one or more agencies, incident management (IMTs) actively engaged, and demand and mobilization of interagency resources is high. Alberta is at level 5, indicating assistance is required, Saskatchewan is at level 3, and all other agencies at preparedness level 2 or 1.

Nationally, the number of fires is somewhat above average for this time of year and nearly 10 times the average for area burned for this time of year. There was 305 net new fire starts, with 43 of those attributed to lightning-caused starts reported over the last week.

At the time of this report, aircraft, personnel and equipment have been mobilized to Alberta from British Columbia, Yukon, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and CIFFC with additional resources coming from across Canada in in the next few days. There are no international crews active in Canada, however personnel will be arriving over the weekend. The United States is at preparedness level 2.

Weekly Synopsis

The Province of Alberta has declared a State of Emergency in response to the spring wildfires. Currently in Alberta, there fire bans, restrictions or advisories across the entire province. Multiple evacuation orders due to proximity and smoke across the province are in effect.

Category 2 fire ban will begin Thursday across the Cariboo fire region in British Columbia. Saskatchewan has widespread fire bans extending across the north western through central into the northeast.Ontario has no provincial fire ban in place; however, multiple provincial parks do not allow campfires or open fires. New Brunswick has a category 1 (no burn) fire restriction in place across the province. Nova Scotia has no burning allowed throughout the western half of the province, and fire restrictions across the eastern half of the province.

Yukon, Northwest Territories, Manitoba, Quebec, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador have no provincial/territorial fire restrictions in place.

A few days of cooler, calmer, and showier weather the week of May 7 has helped reduce intense fire activity in western Canada, although a widespread general rain is needed to bring activity to an easily managed level. Lightning has occurred in many areas, and with dryness still present in much of the forest, new fires from lightning strikes is probable. Scattered showers and thundershowers will continue Wednesday and Thursday (May 10-11) in western Canada, although dry air is present in northern British Columbia and Alberta, southern parts of the Territories, and most of Ontario through Atlantic Canada. A departing storm system in the north Atlantic is sending showers or flurries through eastern Labrador.

Prognosis

Warm air flowing into the Territories and northern Ontario will continue to melt snow and allow seasonal fire weather index calculations to start. Showers and thundershowers will continue in western Canada until Thursday, May 11, then a strong high pressure area begins to stretch in from the Pacific. This ridge appears broader than the early May event that brought incessant winds with hot and dry air, so warmth will stretch further east and winds will vary more in speed and direction until the ridge gets bumped east, likely by the middle of the May 14 week. Many locations will have daytime high temperatures between 25C and 35C with low humidity, so fire danger will generally rise. With the hot, dry air and forest floor moisture limited in most locations, some fires may still occur from lightning strikes that occurred during the week of May 7. Existing fires may show renewed activity. Conditions will vary more from eastern Ontario to the Atlantic, where occasional storm systems will quickly move showers through and temporarily drop temperatures. Fire danger will be variable in much of the region.