Jakarta –
Quebec has been affected by approximately 160 forest fires, making it the most recent hot spot in Canada. Wildfires have devoured land in various places for weeks.
About 110 cases of wildfires are blazing out of control, so the evacuation process is still underway in the largest city in the northern Quebec region.
The western region of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, located about 650 kilometers north of Montreal, was also the hardest hit.
Quebec Public Security Minister Francois Bonnardel said the situation this time was “unprecedented” in the province. Most cases of fires are started by human negligence, he added.
Bonnardel notes that unlike western Canada, Quebec has historically not been as vulnerable to large-scale wildfires as these, “but right now they’re all burning.”
Smog blankets US cities
Smoke from wildfires in Canada has traveled hundreds of miles to New York and New England in the United States (US). “Big Apple”, the nickname for New York City for example, was shrouded in smog.
Many New Yorkers are complaining about the worst visibility record and health issues, including eye irritation.
“It smells of people barbecuing,” said Nicha Suaittiyanon, a 30-year-old Thai tourist, who complained of watery, itchy eyes.
A 43-year-old lawyer, Hugh Hill, also said he had a sore throat from the smog.
An air quality monitor, AirNow, said New York’s air quality index (AQI) had now reached a dangerous level of 413 at 5 p.m. local time on a scale of up to to a score of 500. NASA scientist Ryan Stauffer told the AFP news agency that the record beat the previous New York record set 21 years ago.
In addition, cities on the US East Coast have also issued warnings of worse air quality.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced a slowdown or even halt to several New York flight schedules due to reduced visibility shrouded in smog.
The FAA added that flights from the Midwest and East Coast regions to New York’s LaGuardia Airport have been suspended. Meanwhile, flights to Newark Liberty International Airport have been slowed.
Several New York schools have also suspended all outdoor activities.
This situation has also forced the postponement of scheduled sporting events in Major League Baseball, the Women’s NBA and the National Women’s Soccer League. In the world of music, the opening night concert series in Brooklyn has been canceled.
The White House called the haze “one of the most alarming warnings of how the climate crisis is disrupting our lives”, Wednesday (07/06).
Current situation of forest fires in Quebec
Authorities have ordered the evacuation of approximately 7,500 residents of the remote Chibougamau region of Quebec.
Quebec Prime Minister (PM), Francois Legault, said authorities were monitoring the situation “on time”. He added that the situation in certain parts of the province was still “worrying”, particularly in Abitibi-Témiscamingue.
In the northern city of Sept-Îles, some 4,400 residents who had already been evacuated were allowed to return to their homes after rains helped put out the fires.
“We are very happy to see the rain,” Legault said at a press conference in Sept-Îles. Unfortunately, further north there are still “massive fires which will take weeks to die out completely, so we must remain vigilant”, he added.
Canada asks for help abroad
Canada is also stepping up calls for international help, as more than 480 Canadian wildland firefighters battle to fight wildfires. Quebec is currently extinguishing only about 30 of its roughly 160 fires, Legault said.
“When I speak to the premiers of other provinces, they are very upset,” Legault said. About 413 hotspots have been reported across the country since Monday (05/06) morning.
Nearly 1,000 firefighters arrived from Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States. Meanwhile, about 200 other French officers and other American officials are also expected to arrive soon to help Canadian authorities.
Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he spoke by phone with US President Joe Biden on Wednesday (07/06) to thank him for his “crucial support” in fighting these fires.
“We are seeing an increasing number of fires due to climate change. These fires are affecting our daily routines, lives and livelihoods, and our air quality,” Trudeau wrote on Twitter.
Western Canada has been repeatedly hit by extreme weather events caused by climate change in recent years, including floods, landslides, massive wildfires that have engulfed entire towns, hottest summer temperatures on record that claimed more than 500 lives in 2021.
Earlier in May, wildfires in Alberta also managed to devour nearly a million acres of forest and grassland and left 30,000 people homeless. However, wildfires in eastern Canada are of greater concern, with unprecedented wildfires in areas like Halifax and Nova Scotia requiring the evacuation of thousands of citizens.
kp/ha (AFP, AP)
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