This handout picture provided by Alberta wildfire shows firefighters battling fires in Fox Lake that persist despite the cold and snow in Alberta on February 6.Supplied/Getty Images
For months, officials in Western Canada have been warning that this year could be a dangerous wildfire season, after a warm, dry winter and a lower than usual snowpack left conditions primed for ignition.
This week, it appears the predictions may be coming true.
In Alberta, the government officially declared the start of wildfire season 10 days ahead of the usual March 1 starting date. That allowed the province to issue fire bans and other restrictions to limit the risk. There have been five emergency alerts about wildfires already this year.
British Columbia’s first evacuation order of the season was issued this week as a fast-growing blaze, fanned by strong winds, posed an immediate danger to life near the District of Chetwynd.
“I’m just very concerned with the dry conditions that we have this year. And we’re praying for rain like everybody else,” said Brad Sperling, board chair for Peace River Regional District in northeastern B.C., where the order was issued.
The orders were all swiftly downgraded to evacuation alerts, but they represented the first in what wildfire officials, mayors and residents throughout British Columbia and Alberta know will be many more this year. Smoke last year left a pall over many Canadian cities, and wildfires racked up their most damaging season on record in British Columbia. As unprecedented drought continues in the West, anxiety is rising about the coming season.
Wildfire management and preparation have become a year-round endeavour, especially in B.C. Some 600 members of the BC Wildfire Service have been working full-time, throughout the winter, on preparations including sourcing equipment and seeking out contractors who can step in if fires get bad. Their numbers represent a 56-per-cent increase in full-time staff over 2021.
The service has already hired another 1,300 seasonal firefighters for the summer. It includes 162 initial attack crews, which is an uplift of 13 crews from the previous fire season. Initial attack crews are small, three- or four-person quick-response teams that are able to control over 90 per cent of all new wildfires in B.C.
As of Friday, there were 109 fires burning in B.C. and 52 in Alberta. It’s an early start, but not unusually early.
For months, Mark Parker, chair for the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako, in the province’s north-central area, has met with his local government, provincial officials and BC Wildfire Service to plan for the season and to search for shortfalls.
“The whole province is on edge about what we can be facing, and so there’s been a lot of communication back and forth,” he said in an interview.
His sprawling district, spanning more than 70,000 square kilometres, is among those battling two crises – wildfires and severe drought – at the same time.
A key focus has been improving communications between all levels of government and Indigenous groups.
“We learned last year when you have as many fires as we did in our regional district, you don’t have a lot of times,” he said. “We weren’t used to having that volume of fires, so it takes a lot of time to make sure that it’s all done correctly. So we want to make sure that we’re not losing time with communication.”
In the past, they faced situations where they couldn’t reach the right person while in the midst of issuing an order, Mr. Parker said. So this year, the regional district is trying to ensure they have updated contact information with its partners, he noted.
One priority, Mr. Parker said, was more help in the district’s emergency operations centre, which was mainly responsible for mapping and communications. He said the facility was open for 113 days last year. The hours were long and it was staffed by workers from the district’s various departments, such as planning and economic development.
Christi Friesen owns a farm near Brownvale, Alta., about 50 kilometres southwest of where fire in the Municipal District of Peace No. 135 prompted the temporary evacuation of 25 homes this week.
Ms. Friesen said the early wildfire season has prompted many in her community to fill their water trucks and have farm equipment on stand-by so they can create a firebreak to prevent the spread, if needed.
Conair Air Tractor AT802 Fire Bosses are parked on the tarmac in Abbotsford, B.C., on April. 26.ETHAN CAIRNS/The Canadian Press
“We have two water trucks rigged up so we’re able to transport 10,000 gallons at any time. Literally, it’s one phone call and the trucks are ready to go,” she said.
During the recent fire, her farmhand, along with neighbouring farmers, took their water trucks to fight the fire themselves.
“It’s really the farmers and the ranchers that are on the front lines in a lot of these fires because we are so rural,” she said.
In Kelowna, B.C., where last year a devastating fire ripped through a suburb, forcing 10,000 residents to evacuate, fire officials in the area have been looking to new technologies and techniques as part of their preparation.
Dennis Craig, an assistant fire chief responsible for wildfire mitigation and prevention for the Kelowna Fire Department, said his department has been exploring, for example, the use of drone and thermal cameras to prevent a repeat of last year.
Kelowna has also purchased its own trailers containing essential equipment including pumps, hoses and sprinklers for defending structures and sites against wildfires. The equipment means the city won’t be totally dependent on the province, he noted.
The region is also considering infrastructure upgrades such as larger water systems and upgraded pumps.
“We are making sure we’re staying innovative or staying up to date on new techniques, new technology and not just falling behind,” he said.
Even Mr. Craig’s portfolio is new and his department has also added a new position, captain of mitigation, responsible for preparedness, mitigation and public education programs.
In Dawson Creek, in northeast B.C., the community has transitioned to level two water restrictions as of early February, meaning industry cannot use potable water for non-potable uses, said Chelsea Mottishaw, the city’s emergency planning co-ordinator.
“The timing of it is the earliest that we’ve ever moved to those restrictions,” she said, adding the move was to reduce the pressure on the city’s water system as water levels in the local watershed has hit a historical low.
Dawson Creek hosted more than 2,500 evacuees last year. A volunteer appreciation night is planned for May, Ms. Mottishaw said, an event that will double as a chance to recruit new volunteers for the coming season.
But beyond the new technology, new job titles and ramped up hiring, Mr. Craig and Mr. Parker note residents themselves have to take on sharper responsibilities of minimizing risks to their own properties.
“If you’re in the rural areas and remote areas, have supplies, have a water pump and water tank. Be prepared, and make sure that you move anything that’s flammable from around your properties, your houses, keep the grass trimmed out,” Mr. Parker said.
With a report from Alanna Smith