There are more than 160 fires going on in the province, and most of them can’t be put out
As firefighters rushed to protect communities that were in danger, more than 160 forest fires kept going in Quebec, most of which were out of control.
Yan Boulanger, a research scientist with Natural Resources Canada, said that the fires in Quebec’s commercial forests over the past four days have burned a huge amount of land. He thinks that it’s the same amount of land that has burned over the past 10 years.
He said, “This is a really unique situation.” “If we have that many fires, it means that the last few days have been very dry and very hot, and that a thunderstorm on Thursday set those fires off.”
On Monday morning, air quality warnings were issued all over Quebec because of the fires. In Montreal, Environment Canada told people to take precautions against smog.
The air quality could get worse this afternoon in the greater Montreal area, the agency said.
“Smog is especially bad for kids with asthma and people with lung problems or heart disease. It is recommended that these people don’t do anything too strenuous outside until the smog warning is lifted.”
A more serious special air quality statement was put out for Sept-Îles, a North Shore town whose outskirts were threatened by a fire last week. From Jame Bay to parts of the Outaouais, the special air quality statement covered most of the province.
The statement told people to wear masks if they had to go outside and to use air filters to clean the air inside and make it circulate.
Teams were working to put out 35 fires that were considered urgent risks because they threatened people’s lives or important infrastructure.
The Canadian military was beginning to send more people to help.
“More people means we can fight more fires,” said Mélanie Morin, a spokesperson for the Canadian Red Cross.Société de protection des forêts contre le feu (SOPFEU).
“Every day, our priorities change based on how the wind blows. One day, a fire could be moving away from a town, but the next day, a change in the wind could make it come back.
Premier Francois Legault is going to talk about the forest fires in the afternoon on Monday.