Just how bad are the fires in Canada anyway?

[arabian knight]

I just got this as a weather advisory. Wow I don't think I have ever heard such smoke problems coming from wild fires in Canada.
And I just went outside and I can SMELL the smoke WOW.

Special Statement
Issued at: 5:09 PM CDT on July 6, 2015, expires at: 8:15 PM CDT on July 06, 2015

...Smoke moving into the area...
Smoke from the Canadian fires will move into the area late this
afternoon and then linger through much of the evening. This smoke
will reduce visibilities to as low as 2 miles at times. Unlike
this past weekend...some locations will experience an odor with
this smoke. In addition...air quality has reached the unhealthy
category in areas central Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin.
People with heart or lung disease...older adults...and children
should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion. Everyone else should
reduce prolonged or heavy exertion.

[farmrbrown]

Last week we saw the smoke here, in western NC, if that tells you anything.

[Fennick]

AK, it's extremely bad, some of the worst high temperatures known on record and the temperature records keep on getting broken every day. There are over 3,000 wildfires extending across all of western Canada from the Arctic to the Canada-USA border and from the Pacific Ocean now into northern Manitoba. Many many thousands of people have been evacuated from their towns.

WR has a topic about it in Country Families forum called "Please don't laugh at me" and I have a topic about it called "Hot, hot, hot" in GC, including a sattelite picture of the huge smoke blanket covering both sides of the border on the Pacific coast.

[wr]

The last I heard, there are 178 fires currently burning in BC, 128 in Alberta and Saskatchewan has about 112 fires but have evacuated about 13,000 people from several communities.

I'm not in bush country but I was evacuated for a few hours today because somebody threw a cigarette from a car window and the resulting fire was accelerated by very high winds.

[arabian knight]

Sorry to hear about so many. I had no idea, no news like that gets much play in the US on the Networks. And I just talked to a older lady friend and she said no she can't even remember such smoke as that coming this far into WI.
Have to get on the net and do some searches for such things I guess.
Thanks again for the updates. I had no idea it was that bad until I received that weather statement via e mail for my county.
With a window open next to where I sit for being on the computer it is coming in pretty dern strong, so much so, I closed the window, as the temps have really cooled down and now is only 61º.

[MO_cows]

The moon has been coming up red. As it climbs higher in the sky it turns to more of a dirty orange. There's a lot of smoke in the atmosphere.

[Irish Pixie]

We have an air quality alert today because of the Canadian fires.

Everyone in the fire areas please stay safe.

[watcher]

This might just show how 'bad' they are.

[Cornhusker]

We are getting smoke from Canada too.
This morning, the sun was blood red...kinda pretty
You Canucks stay safe up there in Da Great White North

[where I want to]

Being caught in a wildfire is a very, very scary thing. My heart goes out to those who are threatened. We are having a drop in temoeratures here in N. California, so maybe for you all too soon.

[wr]

This is a current map showing the status of the fires in Alberta:

http://wildfire.alberta.ca/wildfire-...tatus-map.aspx

BC fires status:

http://apps.gov.bc.ca/pub/dmf-viewer...84402955244847

I can't find a similar map for Saskatchewan but the provincial government website indicates that there are 113 fires in the province with 25 still not contained.

[rambler]

Been hazy for a week around here, couple of really heavy days.

Yesterday it stunk real bad, couldn't see the third neighbor the haze was so bad.

Really something.

Paul

[kasilofhome]

Are the bulk lighting?

[wr]

Originally Posted by kasilofhome

Are the bulk lighting?

Most are from lightning strikes but there are a few that are man made.

[kasilofhome]

That's really over looked is fires are destructive ....but natural.

They are scary.

[arabian knight]

Picture taken yesterday of downtown Minneapolis.

[My2butterflies]

It was really bad here yesterday because of the smoke. Really hazy and smelled like an electric fire. Maybe something else mixed with the smoke. Freaked me out enough to check all our outdoor electric.
I can't imagine how scary it is for those that live up there or have family up that way.

[emdeengee]

The biggest fire fighting helicopter has arrived from the US and 1000 Canadian forces members are on the front line of the fires in Saskatchewan. Not to mention all the air tankers. We have a young friend who is a smoke jumper. He is there as well. This is the biggest set of fires with ten times the number of hectares burning as ever before.

During one of the big wildfires in the Okanagan Valley our friends got water bombed by accident. Direct hit on their barn. Splat. Fortunately the horses were out and safe.

[Fennick]

Originally Posted by emdeengee

..... This is the biggest set of fires with ten times the number of hectares burning as ever before.

That's true. It also needs to be mentioned that it's ten times the number of fires burning everywhere than ever before at this time of the year, not yet half way through the wildfire season and still approaching peak wildfire season. The wildfires started in April, a couple of months earlier than usual this year due to earlier than usual high temperatures and low precipitation due to the onset of El Nino conditions.

The long range forecast is for continued higher than normal temperatures and none or low precipitation for another 3 to 4 months. That does not bode well for the remainder of the wildfire season which generally peaks from the end of July through to the end of September then dies down around mid to late October depending on precipitation.

[wr]

Originally Posted by Fennick

That's true. It also needs to be mentioned that it's ten times the number of fires burning everywhere than ever before at this time of the year, not yet half way through the wildfire season and still approaching peak wildfire season. The wildfires started in April, a couple of months earlier than usual this year due to earlier than usual high temperatures and low precipitation due to the onset of El Nino conditions.

The long range forecast is for continued higher than normal temperatures and none or low precipitation for another 3 to 4 months. That does not bode well for the remainder of the wildfire season which generally peaks from the end of July through to the end of September then dies down around mid to late October depending on precipitation.

I'm not sure we can get much less precipitation in my area. I believe we've had just under an inch in the last couple months and what we have had has been isolated showers that evaporate with the hot dry winds.