Canadian communities are grappling with one of the worst starts to wildfire season on record, with forest fires burning in nearly every province across the country.
Wildfires are common in Canada’s western provinces, but this year the eastern province of Nova Scotia is reeling from its worst-ever wildfire season.
On Saturday (June 3), Jason Dain, who has lived in Nova Scotia for 25 years, said he’s never seen such devastation as he evacuated his home with his family and pets.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. So it’s the worst, probably most destructive fire in the history of the province, I would say, in terms of the number of properties destroyed, the number of people displaced, and the area burned. You know, it’s kind of hit all those things, all those records, I would say, this year,” he said.
A report from the provincial government states that five wildfires have been extinguished and five more remain.
At least 24,980 hectares (249.8 square kilometers) have been impacted by fires.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Saturday that Armed Forces personnel would be deployed to assist with fire response in Quebec.
Some 30,000 people across Canada are displaced due to forest fires that are burning in nearly all of the Canadian provinces.
More than 2.7 million hectares have been scorched so far this year across the country, equal to more than five million football fields, federal Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair has said.
