Achi news desk-
New Brunswick officials say the province is ready for this year’s fire season, with 143 trained firefighters, 24 student recruits and two more water bombers.
The province’s 10-year average is 246 fires a year, with 4.5 square kilometers of forest burned, Environment Minister Mike Holland told a news conference about the government’s preparations.
But although the number of fires last year was lower than average, he said they were much more destructive, torching 8.6 square kilometres. He said 202 of the 209 wildfires in 2023 were caused by humans, and seven were caused by lightning.
“In fact, the following years are going to be the same way,” he said.
“So it’s so important … that we have a full complement of people ready at a moment’s notice to be able to make sure New Brunswickers stay safe.”
Wildfire prevention officer Roger Collet said the government has 143 trained firefighters and 24 student recruits ready to fight fires this season. Last year the province had six planes to transport water; this year she has eight, she said.
“It covers us for what we usually have here,” he said. “If we had a really bad season like some of our neighbors did, we would definitely have to bring in extra help, but we have enough help at the moment.”
In Nova Scotia, there was an unprecedented series of wildfires last year in the southwest corner of the province and in the Halifax area, which forced over 16,000 people out of their homes and destroyed 151 houses and dozens of other structures.
New Brunswick has seen a “disturbing” trend where wildfires have not only become more frequent but also more intense, Collet said. “It is a stark reality that demands our attention and action. The devastation caused by wildfires last year was unprecedented during a wildfire season.”
New Brunswick’s fire season begins on the third Monday of April. Fires usually start in the south and move north as the summer progresses, he said.
While New Brunswick had “a lot of precipitation,” over the winter, Collet said, it fell as rain and not snow, meaning it’s possible that grass fires could start earlier than usual.
Meanwhile, federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said on Monday the latest spring fire forecasts suggested a combination of above-average temperatures and limited rain and snow had left drought-like conditions across much of the country. of the country.
The combination of climate change and population growth is leading to an increase in the risk of wildfires on the outskirts of or near urban areas.
Nearly four million Canadians — about one in 10 — live in areas where combustible forests are common, Wilkinson said.
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on April 16, 2024.
