Canada wildfires 2024: The latest on active wildfire counts, maps, evacuation orders, air quality and smoke alerts nationwide

A Saskatchewan First Nation has issued an evacuation order for another of its communities as a fast-moving wildfire approaches.

Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation says it has ordered the evacuation of Southend, a community of more than 1,100 people in northeastern Saskatchewan, according to reports by the Canadian Press.

Officials say more than 550 high-priority individuals and about 200 others have already been safely relocated as of Wednesday afternoon.

Peter Ballantyne comprises nine communities, and this is the second time in two weeks it has had to issue an evacuation order for one of them.

It says about 1,400 people from Sandy Bay remain away from home after the community was ordered evacuated on Aug. 13 because of a wildfire that has since doubled in size.

Active wildfire situation in Saskatchewan

There are currently 66 active wildfires burning across the province, according to a report released Thursday afternoon. Eleven of the blazes have been classified as out-of-control.

Canada passed the grim milestone of 5,000 fires burning nationwide over the 2024 wildfire season to date, according to data posted to the national wildfire dashboard Thursday morning.

Looking back at fire events over the past summer like the extended heat wave across western Canada sparking hundreds of fires a day, or the devastation of Jasper village due to a fast-moving fire — many are wondering how this year is shaping up against those prior.

Let's look at the data

While the 2024 wildfire season is nowhere near as devastating as the 2023 season was in terms of number of active wildfires and total hectares burned, this year is still shaping up to be record-breaking when looking back over the past decade.

In terms of total area burned per year, after last year's record-breaking season, 2024 has seen the most hectares burned since 1995, according to national wildfire data.

When looking at the total active number of wildfires per season, 2024 falls below the 10-year average. What this suggests is while the active number of fires is lower, the impact of each blaze is more far-reaching this year than those prior.

So many trees burned during Canada’s historic wildfire season last year that the forest emitted more carbon than most countries’ fossil fuel emissions for 2022, according to research published Wednesday.

“Only China, the U.S. and India release more on an annual basis than we saw from these fires,” said Brendan Byrne, a carbon cycle scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California and the lead author of the new study.

“These fire emissions were unprecedented in the Canadian record.”

Byrne’s research, published in the journal Nature, estimates that the emissions from the fires — around 647 megatons of carbon — were more than four times Canada’s annual output from fossil fuel use. Nearly 4% of Canada’s forests burned in 2023, the study says.

Last year, more than 232,000 people were evacuated due to wildfires in Canada, and the smoke caused the worst season of smoke exposure in modern U.S. history. Cities like New York were overcome by air pollution.

To estimate the fires’ total carbon emissions for the season, researchers used satellite data evaluating how much light is absorbed by carbon in the atmosphere. They also analyzed the summer’s weather and found that Canada dealt with exceptional drought and its hottest summer since at least 1980. Scientists expect such conditions to become more common.

Although smoke from Canada’s wildfires this season has not had as significant an impact on the U.S. as last year, Mark Parrington, a senior scientist at Copernicus said the wildfires have still been emitting high amounts of carbon in an interview with NBC News.

“​Monitoring of this year’s wildfires are showing that, after 2023, 2024 is already the second highest fire year in the past two decades for Canada in terms of the estimated emissions,” said Parrington.

On a day where man's best friend was honoured for their invaluable contribution to the human experience, the Canadian Red Cross shared a social media post detailing all the ways dogs brought joy amid Alberta's wildfire response this year.

Craig McCarthy, Tiffany Toussaint, and puppy Zissou, in a moment of joy after returning home in Jasper. They were supported by Red Cross throughout their evacuation period.

Shilo, a therapy dog gave emotional support to Red Cross Responder Sidra Saraj at the Humanitarian Service Centre in Hinton, Alberta.

Kelly Dawson, Captain of Training & Fire Prevention with the Jasper Volunteer Fire Brigade, welcomed her dog Luna back to the community after three weeks apart due to the wildfire.

Patches is a therapy dog who provided emotional support to people impacted by the wildfires in Jasper and to Red Cross personnel at the Humanitarian Service Centre in Hinton, Alberta.

The wildfire that ripped through Jasper National Park this summer and destroyed a significant portion of the Jasper townsite is Canada's ninth most expensive disaster for insurance payouts, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC).

"Back in the 1980s, '90s and early 2000s, my industry was paying out on average annually hundreds of millions of dollars in severe weather," IBC national director Rob de Pruis told Jasper council on Tuesday as stated in a report by CBC News.

"But over this past decade, that number is well over $2 billion."

A residential debris removal program is underway, including a sifting program done by Team Rubicon to help residents look for heirlooms among the ashes. According to de Pruis, more than 300 properties have signed up so far.

Once that process is completed, the goal is to clear all debris by Nov. 30 — with a priority given to commercial properties.

Where Jasper wildfire aftermath ranks in other previous Canadian disasters

Jasper is ninth now, when taking stock of several other recent disasters — such as Montreal flooding, Ontario flooding or the Calgary hailstorm — could surpass it, de Pruis tells CBC News.

Below is a chart of the top ten previous highest-ranked natural disasters for insurance payouts.

The number of out-of-control wildfires continues to drop in British Columbia on the heels of a cold front bringing rain and fall-like temperatures to many areas.

About 280 blazes remain active across the province with 15 per cent or just over 40 of those fires classified as burning out of control, according to data posted to the province's wildfire dashboard on Wednesday.

That's down from more than 100 out-of-control fires last week.

For current B.C. evacuation orders and alerts, click HERE.

Campfire bans lifting as of noon Wednesday

Campfire bans are lifting in many regions starting at noon, though other kinds of open burning continue to be prohibited in most areas and the BC Wildfire Service is urging people to stay diligent in controlling their campfires.

For current air quality statements and alerts in B.C., click HERE.

Anyone lighting a campfire must maintain a fireguard by removing flammable debris, they must have sufficient water available to douse the fire, and they must never leave the flames unattended, the service says in a social media post.

Active fires in Canada today: 744

The map below details the locations of wildfires across Canada and classified by status of:

Red = Out of Control

Yellow = Being Held

Blue = Under control

Purple = Out of Control (Monitored)

New fires today (Aug. 28): 3

Fires to date in 2024: 4,994

Area burned to date in 2024 (HA): 4.9M

Key Canada wildfire updates on Wednesday:

🔥 The wildfire that ripped through Jasper National Park this summer and destroyed a significant portion of the Jasper townsite is Canada's ninth most expensive disaster for insurance payouts.

🔥 The number of out-of-control wildfires continues to drop in British Columbia on the heels of a cold front bringing rain and fall-like temperatures to many areas.

🔥 Canada's wildfires last year emitted more carbon than the annual total of all but 3 countries.

Active fires in Canada today: 744

The map below details the locations of wildfires across Canada and classified by status of:

Red = Out of Control

Yellow = Being Held

Blue = Under control

Purple = Out of Control (Monitored)

New fires today (Aug. 27): 7

Fires to date in 2024: 4,981

Area burned to date in 2024 (HA): 4.9M

Key Canada wildfire updates on Tuesday p.m.:

🔥 There are no longer any "wildfires of note" burning in British Columbia.

🔥 N.W.T. to release independent review of its response to 2023 wildfires.

🔥 Could climate change cause more lightning — and spark more wildfires?

🔥 Thousands still out of their homes in Manitoba and Saskatchewan due to wildfires.

Lightning could strike in Canada more often due to the effects of climate change — and amid concerns of drought, that could also mean more dry lightning and wildfires, an analysis by CBC News reveals.

But what links lightning, climate change and wildfires?

Alberta — an area already prone to thunderstorms — could see lightning more often as temperatures around the globe continue to climb.

Experts say the wildfire that recently ripped through Jasper, Alta., was likely caused by lightning. So, could what happened there become a more common occurrence?

A new study in Canadian Journal of Forest Research examined Alberta's 2023 wildfire season, the worst on record. The study found lightning started 13 wildfires in May alone. Usually, Alberta will see one fire started by lightning in May.

Heat is a factor for lightning, but how could rising global temperatures influence the amount of lightning Alberta gets?

Temperatures soared last year: experts say the average global temperature was 1.48 C warmer than the pre-industrial era.

According to a 2014 study published in Science, lightning strikes are expected to increase about 12 per cent for every degree the global average temperature increases.

Nearly 3,800 people from First Nations in Saskatchewan and Manitoba remain out of their homes due to nearby wildfires, according to reports by Canadian Press.

The Canadian Red Cross says it's supporting more than 2,300 from the remote community of Bunibonibee Cree Nation in northeastern Manitoba, offering lodging, food, transportation and supplies.

Chief Richard Hart says crews have made progress on suppressing that fire and are hopeful they can contain it sometime this week.

The Canadian Red Cross is also supporting residents of two other First Nations in northeastern Manitoba.

In Saskatchewan, nearly 1,500 people from the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation in the province's northeast remain out of their homes.

The latest provincial data from Saskatchewan issued Tuesday afternoon shows 68 active wildfires burning across the province — 10 of which are classified as out-of-control.

In Manitoba, the province's wildfire service issued a bulletin Tuesday stating the current fire danger is mainly low across the province, with the exception of The Pas and Flin Flon regions, where the risk is classified as high.

There are currently 82 wildfires burning in the province, with 20 personnel from Newfoundland and New Brunswick currently assisting in wildfire operations, in addition to local forces.

Nova Scotia had its most devastating wildfire season on record last year, with blazes burning through more than 25,000 hectares of land and 200 homes, according to reports by CBC News.

When the fire broke out on Sheep's Head Island, resources were stretched thin across the province, and local Paul Meade realized he and his neighbours had no plan for escape.

• READ MORE: What to expect for 2024 wildfire season, and is climate change causing more fires? Your top questions answered

Fire trucks had blocked the only roadway on and off the island. Locals felt like they were sitting ducks, so many fled on boats.

"That was a wake up call — a serious wake-up call," said Meade.

Meade and the 18 other households on the island — referred to by locals as Sheep's Head Island but recognized as The Head on maps — realized they were vulnerable and wanted to do something about it.

That's when they reached out to Kara McCurdy, Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency's wildfire mitigation manager, for help on what to do next.

McCurdy has vowed to assess every community in the Halifax Regional Municipality for its risk of wildfire and other hazards like floods, educating residents on how they can protect their homes and in turn their neighbours, and identifying issues in the wider community that may need addressing.

Cynthia Weatherston, another Nova Scotia resident tells CBC News she, too, felt vulnerable last year with fires burning roughly 13 kilometres down the road in the Upper Tantallon and Hammonds Plains area. There's only one way in and out of her community.

She and a handful of other residents met with McCurdy, who told them about FireSmart, a national program that teaches residents and communities about how to protect themselves against wildfires.

Weatherston, 59, took that information back to the Masons Point book club, a group of roughly 25 women that meet monthly.

"They immediately said, 'we have to do this. We have to share this information with our neighbourhood. We need to do it,'" said Weatherston.

What can you do to protect your home from a nearby wildfire?

Below are some tips on how homeowners can protect their homes from a nearby out-of-control wildfire.

• Maintain a 1.5 metre non-combustible zone around your home and deck

• Clean and maintain gutters and roofs

• Keep grass and weeds cut below 10 centimetres

• Plant wildfire resistant vegetation to reduce flammability

• Have a wildfire evacuation plan for your household

• Move firewood at least 10 metres from your home

There are no longer any "wildfires of note" burning in British Columbia, with the BC Wildfire Service saying favourable weather had allowed crews to make good progress in the province's battle against hundreds of blazes.

The BC Wildfire Service dashboard on Tuesday shows 282 active wildfires burning across the province, continuing a downward trend from last Friday when there were about 340 fires burning.

For current B.C. evacuation orders and alerts, click HERE.

What is a wildfire of note?

The classification is defined by the wildfire service as a fire that is highly visible or poses a threat to people or public safety.

Earlier this month at least nine blazes had been considered "wildfires of note."

For current air quality statements and alerts in B.C., click HERE.

But fire information officer Emelie Peacock said the change doesn't mean the wildfire season is over, and there are still a handful of evacuation orders and alerts impacting communities around the province.

"It's certainly welcome news for those people who are able to come back to their communities. But we still do have a lot of fire on the landscape," she said Monday in a report published by the Canadian Press.

Provincial campfire bans lifted

The province's southeast fire centre lifted its campfire ban on Monday, though other categories of open fire are still prohibited.

The service said the campfire ban would also be lifted in the coastal fire centre, including Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland, on Wednesday.

Active fires in Canada today: 748

The map below details the locations of wildfires across Canada and classified by status of:

Red = Out of Control

Yellow = Being Held

Blue = Under control

Purple = Out of Control (Monitored)

New fires today (Aug. 27): 2

Fires to date in 2024: 4,973

Area burned to date in 2024 (HA): 5.1M

Key Canada wildfire updates on Tuesday:

🔥 There are no longer any "wildfires of note" burning in British Columbia, with the BC Wildfire Service saying favourable weather had allowed crews to make good progress in the province's battle against hundreds of blazes.

🔥 These Halifax-area communities are getting ready for the next wildfire. Should yours be next?

🔥 Could climate change cause more lightning — and spark more wildfires?

Active fires in Canada today: 775

The map below details the locations of wildfires across Canada and classified by status of:

Red = Out of Control

Yellow = Being Held

Blue = Under control

Purple = Out of Control (Monitored)

New fires today (Aug. 26): 4

Fires to date in 2024: 4,958

Area burned to date in 2024 (HA): 5.1M

Key Canada wildfire updates Monday p.m:

🔥 Parks Canada says a weekend drenching of rain on parts of Jasper National Park is doing a lot to quell fire activity.

🔥 A historic Indigenous firefighting crew from New Brunswick is heading to Alberta to lend a hand in the battle against wildfires.

🔥 Rain and cool weather in British Columbia are dousing wildfire activity in the province, but firefighters are urging vigilance despite the drop in the number of active blazes.

Fire danger remains low to moderate across central Alberta, but lingering dry conditions are resulting in an uptick in wildfire activity in some parts of the province, the province's wildfire management says.

For current Alberta evacuation orders and alerts, click HERE.

There are currently 75 wildfires burning across the province, one of which is classified as out of control.

Weekend downpour slows fire growth in Jasper National Park

Parks Canada says a weekend drenching of rain on parts of Jasper National Park is doing a lot to quell fire activity, but the wet weather also comes with a warning.

Officials caution the heavy rain could make slopes and burned trees unstable, and gusty or shifting winds could cause fire-weakened trees with loose roots to fall.

Jasper National Park and the town remain closed to visitors, but Highway 16 through the park is open and the Icefields Parkway that connects Jasper to Banff and Lake Louise reopened to through traffic last week.

Parks Canada says the encouraging progress crews have made in fighting the Jasper Wildfire Complex means the agency will now switch from daily to weekly updates, unless the fire becomes more active.

As wildfires rage in Western Canada, a group of Indigenous firefighters in New Brunswick is partnering with the province to head to Alberta and lend a hand.

"It's significant to me because, not only in the province but across the country, we're all neighbours, and we all need to come together in crisis to help each other," said Travis Sappier, co-ordinator with the Mawiw Council in an interview with CBC News.

The Wabanaki Wildland Wildfire crew comes out of a cohort of 20 Indigenous firefighters who were trained over the spring. They will join a Department of Natural Resources team of firefighters headed to active fires in northern Alberta for 20 days.

"I think it's really important to them, seeing how they volunteered for a selfless duty, and they took it upon themselves to team up with the provincial officers and agencies to be mobilized out of the province," he said.

He believes this is the first out-of-province mobilization of Indigenous firefighters from Atlantic Canada.

Sappier said the council is looking into continuing the program beyond this year, since the program will give firefighters a chance to go into the line of work and become role models for their families and communities.

"To me, it could become additional career opportunities if they choose to keep that path moving forward," he said.

"We're hoping to have more Indigenous communities involved in Atlantic Canada with this initiative."

Sappier also said, in a news release by the group, the initiative will help address climate change. With more out-of-control wildfires happening, he said it's important to work together "to help make a positive difference for future generations in every community and every province."

The team "is a great example of how in times of crisis, when we come together, we can all help each other when we put our differences aside and all contribute to the bigger picture," Sappier said.

Rain and cool weather across British Columbia are dousing wildfire activity in the province, however, firefighters are urging vigilance despite the drop in the number of active blazes.

For current B.C. evacuation orders and alerts, click HERE.

The BC Wildfire Service says there are now about 312 active wildfires in the province, continuing a decreasing trend this week as only seven blazes have started in the last 24 hours, according to the province's wildfire dashboard.

The wildfire service says more than 100 wildfires have been declared extinguished in the last week, and firefighters are "working to take advantage of lower fire behaviour and rates of spread."

The two-square-kilometre Corya Creek wildfire in northwestern B.C., about 170 kilometres northeast of Terrace, is the province's only fire-of-note.

For current air quality statements and alerts in B.C., click HERE.

The wildfire service says more than 10,000 square kilometres of land has been burned in B.C. in this year's fire season starting April 1.

That followed a record wildfire season in 2023 where more than 28,000 square kilometres of land was burned, forcing the evacuations of communities in regions such as the Okanagan and the Shuswap.

Active fires in Canada today: 775

The map below details the locations of wildfires across Canada and classified by status of:

Red = Out of Control

Yellow = Being Held

Blue = Under control

Purple = Out of Control (Monitored)

New fires today (Aug. 26): 2

Fires to date in 2024: 4,950

Area burned to date in 2024 (HA): 5.1M

Key Canada wildfire updates Monday:

🔥 Parks Canada says a weekend drenching of rain on parts of Jasper National Park is doing a lot to quell fire activity.

🔥 A historic Indigenous firefighting crew from New Brunswick is heading to Alberta to lend a hand in battle against wildfires.

🔥 Rain and cool weather in British Columbia is dousing wildfire activity in the province, but firefighters are urging vigilance despite the drop in the number of active blazes.