Smoke from the fires prompted poor air quality alerts in several cities in the province of Alberta in western Canada on Sunday, but helped cool the blazes by blocking out the sun's rays.
"The smoke toll is mixed," Christie Tucker of Alberta's fire agency said at a news conference.
"Many Albertans obviously can't escape the smoke this weekend. It's thick in many parts of the province," she acknowledged.
"But they will also have noticed that the temperatures are cooler than if the smoke had not covered the sun."
“Less heat, Ms. Tucker explained, means we have seen fewer fires spread.” Only five new fire starts have been reported since Friday.
However, the firefighters have not been able to carry out as many flights as desired in recent days in order to establish the size and number of fires.
In recent weeks, tens of thousands of people have been forced to evacuate and more than 941,000 hectares (9,410 km2) have gone up in smoke.
The smoke from the fires covers more than 2.7 million km2 and extends to the Atlantic coast of the United States and the Arctic.
Environmental authorities in Canada have warned of suspected poor air quality posing "very high risks" to health in the cities of Edmonton and Calgary, where the sky is orange and the lingering smell of smoke. Residents have been urged to limit their outdoor activities.
Air quality alerts were also issued in several US states as thick plumes of smoke from Alberta crossed the border.
In recent years, western Canada has been regularly hit by extreme weather events, the intensity and frequency of which are increased by global warming.
Daytime highs of 28°C, above seasonal averages, are expected to drop about 10 degrees by Monday and remain low this week.
Further rain is also expected after rainfall across Alberta this weekend. But "we're not out of the hostel yet," Ms Tucker said.
05/22/2023 03:08:07 - Ottawa (AFP) - © 2023 AFP
