# Canadian wildfires -- here we go again **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 12, 2024, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463 "2024-05-12T21:33:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/1 "2024-05-12T21:33:02Z")
[Here’s today’s CNN article](https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/12/us/wildfire-smoke-from-british-columbia-causing-dangerous-air-quality/index.html) on fires rampaging in two provinces: > Approximately 3,200 residents in northeastern British Columbia were under an evacuation order Saturday afternoon as the Parker Lake fire raged on in the area, spanning more than 4,000 acres. Meanwhile, evacuation alerts were in place for parts of Alberta as the MWF-017 wildfire spread to nearly 5,000 acres. > > Smoke from the infernos has caused Environment Canada to issue a special air quality statement that extends from British Columbia to Ontario. And it’s only mid-May, barely the start of Canada’s wildfire season, which normally doesn’t hit its height till June and July. Will 2024 be as awful as last year? The air-quality alerts are already being issued for as far east as Ontario. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/2 "2024-05-12T21:45:53Z")
We had smoke haze a couple of days ago from BC and Alberta. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/3 "2024-05-12T21:47:35Z")
Did you get hammered with smoke a lot last year? The stuff made it to New England last summer, noticeably dimming the days more than once. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/4 "2024-05-12T21:49:29Z")
Yes, we got a lot, but not as bad as some of the photos we saw of New York. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/5 "2024-05-12T22:09:27Z")
The prevailing winds with the haze must have had a southward as well as eastward direction, since Boston and northward on the coast wasn’t as bad as New York. Let’s hope (despite global warming) it isn’t as bad a season this year. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/6 "2024-05-12T22:45:41Z")
Or at least better prepared. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/7 "2024-05-12T22:52:07Z")
Batman does fire fighting now? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2024, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/8 "2024-05-12T22:55:09Z")
Only if they send up a giant signal showing roasting s’mores. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/9 "2024-05-13T03:30:13Z")
I am absolutely dreading the fire season. Every year is worse than the last and we are predicted to have a catastrophic fire season this year. Here on Vancouver Island it’s already a bit hazy, the forests are tinder dry and it’s a disaster waiting to happen. Where I live there is only one long, forested road leading in and out to our house. If there is a fire that cuts us off from escape, our plan is to head to the river and try to swim across to the other side. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/10 "2024-05-13T13:16:30Z")
That’s terrifying! Can you get hold of a boat and keep it ready? I can’t help wondering what major Canadian cities might find a wildfire raging toward them, and what a catastrophe in so many ways that would be. Bad enough the smaller towns and outlying homes being incinerated, but a metropolis would be orders of magnitude worse. ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/11 "2024-05-13T15:00:48Z")
In Minnesota, we had your smoke all day yesterday. I think it finally cleared out this morning. The wind must have switched. It’s hard to believe that we can be so far away yet even smell the burning wood. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/12 "2024-05-13T15:19:32Z")
Canadians are so polite. WTF has gone wrong with their fires? ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/13 "2024-05-13T15:22:53Z")
The river is about a 5 minute walk away and not on our property so we’d just be making a mad dash for it. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/14 "2024-05-13T18:20:14Z")
Stopped getting very cold winters in some parts, or less snow. So less water in the dry soil. Earlier spring and summers. We’ve always had wildfires but not so many or so large. Hope the government is better prepared this year. We don’t need Canadian cities on the most polluted list. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/15 "2024-05-13T19:19:13Z")
More info. (Post gift link.) > **[Canada’s fire season erupts, sending harmful smoke into United States](https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2024/05/13/canadian-wildfire-smoke-minnesota-wisconsin/?pwapi_token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJyZWFzb24iOiJnaWZ0IiwibmJmIjoxNzE1NTcyODAwLCJpc3MiOiJzdWJzY3JpcHRpb25zIiwiZXhwIjoxNzE2OTU1MTk5LCJpYXQiOjE3MTU1NzI4MDAsImp0aSI6IjgyMGFlYmY3LTU2YzQtNDgyNS05ZmM3LTA5M2JjMTFmZGZkZSIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lndhc2hpbmd0b25wb3N0LmNvbS93ZWF0aGVyLzIwMjQvMDUvMTMvY2FuYWRpYW4td2lsZGZpcmUtc21va2UtbWlubmVzb3RhLXdpc2NvbnNpbi8ifQ.SgT7VUYKPP_T7F2-fxoJDOfPXkAg1sc43a6unmVNSmk&itid=gfta)** > > Air quality alerts are in effect in Minnesota and Wisconsin — an unwelcome reminder of last summer, when Canadian wildfire smoke spread south. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2024, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/16 "2024-05-13T19:37:32Z")
not too long ago I read [Fire Weather: A True Story from a Hotter World](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61966364-fire-weather?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=NF41W2R2ob&rank=1) and I recommend it to anyone who doesn’t understand how different fire is from what it was not that long ago. not in a good way! 🙄 ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2024, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/17 "2024-05-15T11:55:41Z")
Yeah. > **[No internet, no phone: Canada wildfires expose fragility of rural infrastructure](https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/may/15/internet-access-rural-canada-wildfires)** > > Remote communities suffer total loss of communications after fires damage critical fibre optic cables ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/18 "2024-05-15T15:15:45Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > WTF has gone wrong with their fires? > **['Zombie Fires' burning at an alarming rate in Canada](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68228943)** > > Canada's wildfire season is not over, with dozens of winter fires still burning beneath the soil. Essentially, these are last year’s fires coming back to life after “over-wintering” under the snow. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2024, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/19 "2024-05-15T18:35:04Z")
Hot, dry, windy. Not a great combo. > **[Unwieldy wildfires scorch Canada and threaten a community scarred by past...](https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/15/weather/canada-wildfires-fort-mcmurray-climate-wednesday/index.html)** > > More than 100 wildfires tearing across Canada are choking the air with smoke and forcing thousands to evacuate as flames encroach on communities, including a city still haunted by a catastrophic 2016 fire dubbed “The Beast.” ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2024, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463/20 "2024-05-15T18:55:22Z")
Are you freaking kidding me?!!! 😳 Now, wait a minute. First of all, fires need oxygen, so why doesn’t the snow cover simply suffocate the fire?! Also, the heat of the fire must melt the snow above it, so why doesn’t the water from the melting snow act as nature’s “sprinkler system” and wash out the fire?! Wow, this just gets better and better. 🙄 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-wildfires-here-we-go-again/1001463.md?page=2)