The sudden onset of abnormally high temperatures, exceeding seasonal normals by 10°C in places in early May, triggered floods in western Canada, but also dozens of fires, forcing thousands of people to evacuate.
The west and center of the country, where a large part of the agricultural land is concentrated, are currently experiencing “abnormally dry” conditions, even a “severe drought” in places, according to the latest government surveys.
Friday in Alberta, the province most affected by forest fires currently, there were more than 70 active fires, and several out of control. Some 13,000 residents are targeted by evacuation orders, according to authorities.
The main focus, located in Fox Lake, in the north of the province, extends over nearly 1,500 hectares and has already consumed a small community comprising about twenty houses.
British Columbia between floods and fires
British Columbia, on the Pacific coast, is doubly affected: several fires are active inland and the south of this province is threatened by a rapid snowmelt which has raised the level of rivers, some of which are out of their bed.
And according to the authorities, the heavy rains expected during the weekend could aggravate the situation.
“Several days of unusually warm temperatures have resulted in rapid snowmelt and high flows across much of interior British Columbia, with severe flooding ongoing in some areas,” provincial officials said. .
“Severe flooding is possible, and extreme flooding reaching historic levels is plausible, in areas that receive heavy rainfall in addition to rapid snowmelt,” they added, noting that “maximum river levels are expected between Saturday and Monday.
In recent years, western Canada has been hit repeatedly by extreme weather events, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming.
In addition to catastrophic flooding, British Columbia was also hit two years ago by the effects of a “historic” heat dome, which claimed hundreds of lives and was followed by major fires.