By Chris Muhizi for MCN Thursday June 8th/2023.
The worst wildfire season Canada has ever had is raising worries about the deteriorating effects of climate change, and allies from around the globe have pledged to increase support for Canada’s fight against hundreds of fires.
On Thursday, forest fires raged throughout Canada, displacing thousands of residents and causing a veil of smoke to cover much of the United States.
Over the past two weeks, the US has dispatched hundreds of firefighters to Canada and is continuing to do so.
Chuck Schumer, the majority leader of the U.S. Senate, urged Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Thursday to quadruple the number of American employees ready to assist with fighting wildfires in Canada.
“The climate catastrophe is urgent and unavoidable. In a speech on the Senate floor, Schumer emphasized the need for immediate and long-term action against the climate problem.#REUTERS reports.
Following a discussion about the need to “work together to address the devastating impacts of climate change,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau thanked U.S. President Joe Biden for his assistance on Wednesday, according to a statement from Trudeau’s office.
According to Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, France, Portugal, and Spain were deploying more than 280 firefighters. New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa have all supplied personnel as well.
Some of the worst fires have sprung up in the eastern province of Quebec, where some 12,600 people have had to evacuate their homes, provincial Public Safety Minister Francois Bonnardel told a briefing on Thursday.
In parts of the Pacific province of British Columbia, which is battling the second-biggest wildfire on record, temperatures were forecast to hit 33 Celsius (91 Fahrenheit) on Thursday, before thunderstorms and heavy rains arrive on Friday.
Although wildfires are common in Canada, it is unusual for blazes to be burning simultaneously in the east and west, stretching firefighting resources and forcing the Canadian government to send in the military to help.
