‘The weather isn’t as intense as the 2021 heat wave but it’s longer,’ said Prof. Mike Flanagan
While spared the rampaging wildfire infernos of last year, underlying drought conditions now driven by relentlessly high temperatures could still mean fiery times for Alberta and the West, says a forestry expert.
Prof. Mike Flanagan warily eyes maps that show the very high or extreme levels of fire risk throughout most of the province.
Another set of indicators, known as red flag warnings are at least as stark, particularly in the province’s boreal forest north, said Flanagan of Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops.
“Because of the extended heat wave, things are really dry and (conducive) to ignition by humans or lightning . . . it means ‘watch out, it’s explosive,’” said Flanagan.
Due to years of drought, it doesn’t take many days of extreme heat to set the stage for fires being sparked and to spread quickly, he said.
“It only takes a few days and things are ready to rip — it’s the reality of climate change, the warmer it gets, the more efficiently moisture is sucked from the vegetation and you also get more lightning,” said Flanagan.
Calgarians can expect to bake in temperatures reaching the mid-30 C range through Wednesday with conditions cooling down to the mid-20s into the weekend, said Brian Proctor, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.
“It’s a really strong upper ridge of high pressure right through the month — that desert air from California and Arizona has pushed northwards into B.C. and Alberta,” said Proctor.
By mid-week, Calgary will be approaching the most consecutive number of days where temperatures hit 29 C and above — 10 — set in early July of 1985, he said.
“But we’ve exceeded the high (temperatures of that time) already,” said Proctor.
Wildfire smoke less of an issue in Calgary
Wildfire smoke from B.C. and northern Alberta that’s severely blanketed northern parts of the province has only reached moderate levels in Calgary and that should clear on the weekend, he said.
“The smoke has been a little patchier around Calgary but in B.C., we’re seeing more wildfires sparking up,” said Proctor.
Tiny particulate matter from wildfire smoke contains a variety of toxic chemicals and can damage the respiratory system and enter the bloodstream, impacting the health of anyone, particularly the elderly, very young and those with chronic conditions.
Alberta Wildfire says though there are no active fires in the Calgary Forest Area west of the city, the dangers of them starting ranges from moderate to extreme, with the overall rating sitting at very high.
“Areas that were impacted by localized rainfall are benefitting from a very short-term reprieve,” they stated on their online update on July 18.
“It is important to note that rainfall was NOT widespread and extreme temperatures are persisting driving up the wildfire danger in most areas.”
As a result, a fire ban throughout the zone currently prohibits outdoor blazes including those at campsites, with the exception of propane-powered portable pits and stoves.
Wildfire season not as intense as 2023’s, but still ‘an active fire season’
While he doesn’t expect this year’s fire season to be nearly as critical as 2023’s, Thompson Rivers University’s Flanagan said it’s still above average in severity and could get significantly worse.
So far in 2024, about 500,000 hectares have burned in Alberta, compared to 1.75 million hectares last year by this time.
“It won’t come close to 2023 which was head and shoulders above anything we’ve seen and likely to see again,” said Flanagan.
“But it’s already been an active fire season, so stay tuned.”
Ironically, one of the products of wildfires — smoke — can help mitigate the blazes by cooling the landscape and recent higher humidity levels can have the same effect, he said.
Environment Canada’s Proctor said the province is now feeling the effects of a mountain snowpack that was once again below average during the winter, with a spring arrival of considerable moisture not entirely replacing that.
“We needed a substantial amount of moisture and we didn’t get it,” he said.
Paramedics seeing increase in heat-induced calls
While it’s difficult to calculate the number of heat-induced calls Calgary paramedics have taken, their volume has noticeably increased, said EMS spokesman Stuart Brideaux.
“We’ve definitely attended to a rise in heat-related calls, given the very prolonged nature of this weather,” he said.
“It’s people not expecting to be out in the heat as long as they are, or the heat is catching up to them due to alcohol or drugs.”
Some patients have been treated with intravenous-delivered fluids “when oral rehydration isn’t enough” and ambulances provide shade and an air-conditioned space, said Brideaux.