Forests Minister Ravi Parmar said the majority of B.C. wildfire resources that have been sent elsewhere in Canada are expected back in the next week as the province's wildfire activity ramps up.
Crews, equipment and aviation resources have been sent to eastern provinces to help battle wildfires, Parmar said during an update Monday (June 9) on B.C.'s wildfire and drought situation. Just over 100 B.C. wildland firefighters have been sent to Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario.
Parmar acknowledged it's been a challenging situation for many Canadians in the Prairies and Ontario as they deal with their own wildfires.
Emergency Management Minister Kelly Greene said the images coming out of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Alberta are heartbreaking. She added tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes, while two people died in May in Manitoba as a result of a wildfire.
In Manitoba, there are 29 active wildfires burning across the province, a fire bulletin from the province said Monday. It adds the province continues to be at a low-to-moderate fire danger level, with the province's northeast under a high-to-extreme fire danger.
To date, more than 21,000 Manitobans from 27 communities have registered as wildfire evacuees with the Red Cross.
In Saskatchewan, a June 9 update, says there are 25 active wildfires in the province. There are 18 active evacuations.
In Alberta, there are currently 59 active wildfires, with about half of those under control. A little more than a third are burning out of control.
A wildfire in B.C., about 65 kilometres south of Dawson Creek, . The Alberta government says an evacuation order has been expanded to include everyone north of Township Road 700 to Highway 43 and east of the British Columbia/Alberta border to Range Road 130. An alert has expanded to include everyone north of Township Road 710 to 752 and east of Range Road 130 to Range Road 124.
In Ontario, a June 8 update says there were three new wildland fires confirmed in the province's northeast region. In total, there are 25 active wildfires burning in Ontario's two wildfire regions.
