Alberta on high alert for wildfire upsurge over scorching holiday weekend
Reuters
Published May 20, 2023 08:08AM ET
Updated May 21, 2023 12:36AM ET
By Ismail Shakil
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Firefighters in Alberta are on high alert for a surge in blazes over a long weekend in the oil-rich Canadian province, which is enduring throttled energy production, home evacuations and property damage after an intense start to the wildfire season.
Record-high temperatures and lack of rain this year have led to widespread fires burning nearly 830,000 hectares (2 million acres) of land in Alberta, about 10 times the size of the province's largest city, Calgary, according to Alberta Wildfire.
Ahead of the Victoria Day weekend, authorities have closed some parks and campgrounds in Alberta, and are urging residents to avoid activities that could enrage wildfires, to avoid straining firefighting resources.
The holiday weekend, when residents traditionally go camping or enjoy other outdoor activities in warmer weather, usually sees an uptick in seasonal wildfires, some of which are accidentally caused by people.
"We will all be on high alert this weekend," Christie Tucker, information unit manager at Alberta Wildfire, said on Friday. "We're positioned for sustained action on those wildfires currently on the landscape, we're prepared for new starts and we continue to bring in extra resources."
Over 2,800 firefighters from Canada and the United States were battling about 93 active wildfires on Friday, and more were expected to join on Saturday.
The wildfires have tested Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's disaster management skills ahead of a provincial election on May 29.
Some 275 houses, businesses and other properties had been damaged, while more than 10,000 people remained evacuated by Friday, according to Alberta government officials. Several oil and gas companies have had to sporadically stop or restart production on fluctuating fire-related risks.
Over the past couple of weeks, gas flowing from Canada to the U.S. has averaged just 7.1 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd), well below the 8.4-bcfd average exported since the start of 2023 and 9.0-bcfd in 2022, according to Refinitiv.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.