Early in the month of July, fires started to rage across all of Canada, destroying cabins and isolating Indigenous communities. Many highways and roads were blocked by the fire which prevented people from escaping. Residents who tried to evacuate along a highway called Billy Diamond Highway met large fires that raged for a long time. “I honestly wasn’t sure we’d make it out,” said Joshua Iserhoff, 45, a member of the Cree nation of Nemaska who was forced to turn back with his wife and two children and who, like other residents, eventually found another way out.”(NewYorkTimes). One person stated that the wind was so crazy that it almost picked up a vehicle.
Ever since May with small fires, hundreds of wildfires in Canada have grown in size and burned an area the size of the state of New York (47,000 square miles) and more than 25,000 indigenous people have been displaced. The fires have been particularly harsh for the indigenous population as they depend on the forest for food and for a home. The government has so far paid 55 million dollars to affected communities. Some plumes of smoke have drifted over the US causing major problems in the air. More than 1,000 fires have been spotted and more than 600 of those are out of control. 21,000 natives in the quebec area were placed under total or partial evacuation.
The government is starting to evacuate people from places where wildfires are raging. Some were airlifted by plane while others were evacuated by the army using helicopters.On an 11-hour bus ride from Nemaska to Quebec City, William Wapachee, 79, who said he had lung cancer, started coughing and had trouble breathing.’ Before reaching the city, he was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital where he received oxygen.“I inhaled too much of that smoke,” Mr. Wapachee said.“Before, if we had fire, it was only in one place,” he added. “Now it seems to be a fire here, a fire there, fire everywhere.” ‘(NewYorkTimes)
This shows the dangers that smoke and fire possess and the damage on the human body it can inflict. It seems apparent that the fires won’t stop until autumn or winter. People continue to be evacuated from dangerous areas and the fires continue to burn.
Ever since May with small fires, hundreds of wildfires in Canada have grown in size and burned an area the size of the state of New York (47,000 square miles) and more than 25,000 indigenous people have been displaced. The fires have been particularly harsh for the indigenous population as they depend on the forest for food and for a home. The government has so far paid 55 million dollars to affected communities. Some plumes of smoke have drifted over the US causing major problems in the air. More than 1,000 fires have been spotted and more than 600 of those are out of control. 21,000 natives in the quebec area were placed under total or partial evacuation.
The government is starting to evacuate people from places where wildfires are raging. Some were airlifted by plane while others were evacuated by the army using helicopters.On an 11-hour bus ride from Nemaska to Quebec City, William Wapachee, 79, who said he had lung cancer, started coughing and had trouble breathing.’ Before reaching the city, he was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital where he received oxygen.“I inhaled too much of that smoke,” Mr. Wapachee said.“Before, if we had fire, it was only in one place,” he added. “Now it seems to be a fire here, a fire there, fire everywhere.” ‘(NewYorkTimes)
This shows the dangers that smoke and fire possess and the damage on the human body it can inflict. It seems apparent that the fires won’t stop until autumn or winter. People continue to be evacuated from dangerous areas and the fires continue to burn.
