By the numbers: Record-shattering Canadian wildfire season persists at frenetic pace
The acreage scorched in July alone would rank as the country’s seventh-worst fire season on record, and that’s only a fraction of the story.
The out-of-control Eagle Bluff fire engulfed a mountainside near Osoyoos, British Columbia, on July 29, prompting evacuation orders for the town.
Canada’s worst wildfire season on record continues to wreak havoc across the country and abroad, AccuWeather forecasters say, and there’s no end in sight. Here are the numbers behind the destruction.
This wildfire season set a new record for acres burned in one year as early as June 24. According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center, about 19 million acres of land had burned by that date, easily eclipsing the previous record of 17.5 million acres set in 1995.
In July, the situation rapidly deteriorated. By the end of the month, wildfires had scorched more than 30 million acres in Canada. As of Aug. 2, the number sits just above 32 million acres.
Flames from the Donnie Creek wildfire burn along a ridge top north of Fort St. John, British Columbia, Canada, Sunday, July 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
In July alone, the fires had burned just under 11 million acres, a more severe output than most of the country’s previous seasons. In comparison, just under 4 million acres burned in the entirety of the 2022 season. This July by itself would rank as the country’s seventh-worst fire season on record.
Quick facts
•Almost 4 million acres have been burned in Quebec alone.
•The total area burned this season is similar to the land area of North Carolina.
•Just under an eighth of all acres burned on record in Canada ever have been burned this year. Records began in 1983.
•In the United States, the fire season has been devastating but slightly less destructive -- fires have burned just over 1 million acres this year as of Aug. 2.
Throughout the summer, wildfire smoke has affected air quality across the U.S., particularly in the Midwest and Northeast, occasionally creating eerie scenes that onlookers described as apocalyptic. Smoke was also captured on satellite images reaching as far as Western Europe.
The GOES-16 satellite captures images of smoke streaming across the Great Lakes and into the Northeast on Tuesday, August 1. (Photo/RAMMB/CIRA)
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