Fires in Canada: Quebec, the latest victim of the extraordinary fires that are ravaging the country

It’s Quebec’s turn to experience its season in hell. After Alberta in the west of the country in early May, Nova Scotia in the east, on the week of May 27, the Belle Province, in turn, has been devastated by fires since May 29. At the height of the crisis, on June 5, the Society for the Protection of Forests from Fire (Sopfeu) counted 160 active outbreaks in Quebec, of which 90% were considered safe. “out of control”.

On the north coast, on the St. Lawrence River, 900 kilometers east of Montreal, and in Abitibi-Temiskamingu, in the northwest of the province, the fires are the most intense. Dozens of municipalities declared a state of emergency in their cities and ordered evacuations again Tuesday evening. And, within days, nearly 10,000 people had to temporarily leave their homes.

Among them, 1,500 residents of the Innu community, located near the main town of Sect-Îles on the north coast, saw the fire come dangerously close to their home on the afternoon of June 2. “We couldn’t smell anything, the wind was blowing smoke from the north, says resident, Albert Woland, But when we heard on the radio that we should leave everything without panic, we took our most important things, papers and hit the road. » for him and his family to a hotel a few kilometers away, while other residents traveled by bus to seek refuge in the friendly Innu community of Pesamiti, 300 kilometers away. Four days later, on June 6, the evacuation order was lifted. “The rain has finally come, it’s coming and it’s coming hard”, Albert Woland was delighted to find his house intact. In Abitib, the meteorological services do not predict any precipitation in the coming days, except for small thunderstorms with the risk of lightning.

Decreasing air quality

In total, 220,000 hectares in the territory of Quebec have already gone up in smoke; On the same day, over the past decade, Soffeu noted, an average of less than 250 hectares has burned. Quebec’s 480 firefighters deployed, supported by 150 soldiers from the Canadian Armed Forces, admit they cannot handle every fire. On June 4, Emmanuel Macron announced the dispatch of one hundred French firefighters. “Canada is facing a terrible fire. France stands together (…). Canadian friends, reinforcements are coming”wrote the head of state on Twitter. “Thank you cousins! »Quebec Premier Francois Legault immediately responded. But in anticipation of reinforcements scheduled for Wednesday, authorities had to prioritize: “First protect people’s lives, then ensure the safety of strategic infrastructure such as at Hydro-Québec” (Public Hydroelectric Company) and finally, trying to save the forest as much as possible.