Fort McMurray – News, Research and Analysis – The Conversation

Smoke from the McDougall Creek wildfire nearly blocks out the sun in Kelowna, B.C. on Aug. 18, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

August 19, 2023

Yellowknife and Kelowna wildfires burn in what is already Canada’s worst season on record

Andrew Weaver, University of Victoria

The devastating wildfire that destroyed the historic Maui town of Lahaina was still making headlines when Yellowknife issued an evacuation order.

People without vehicles line up in Yellowknife to register for a flight to Alberta; residents were ordered to evacuate the area because of encroaching wildfire. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Bill Braden

August 18, 2023

Yellowknife fires: Evacuees will need culturally specific support services

Jack L. Rozdilsky, York University, Canada

As the mass evacuation of Yellowknife unfolds, the needs of minority populations will emerge. Past experiences indicate emergency officials may not be ready to meet the needs of a diverse population.

Decisions made by those in charge of wildfire response can have a major impact on how quickly the fire is contained. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

July 16, 2023

Joining forces: How collaboration can help tackle Canada’s escalating wildfire threat

Julia Baird, Brock University; Angela Guerrero, Queensland University of Technology; Daniel Nohrstedt, Uppsala University; Örjan Bodin, Stockholm University, and Robert J Summers, University of Alberta

Effective collaboration may be a key to minimizing impacts of the growing wildfire season in Canada.

Satellite image of a forest fire in July 2021 in northern Saskatchewan (Wapawekka Hills). The image covers an area of about 56 kilometres in width and is based on Copernicus Sentinel data. (Pierre Markuse), CC BY 2.0

May 10, 2023

Forest fires: North America’s boreal forests are burning a lot, but less than 150 years ago

Victor Danneyrolles, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC); Raphaël Chavardès, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT), and Yves Bergeron, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)

North America’s boreal forests have been burning a lot, probably more and more over the past 60 years. Yet the long-term trend indicates that they are burning less than they were 150 years ago.

Flood waters surround Keyano College and Fort McMurray Composite High School in late April 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Greg Halinda

May 21, 2020

Fort McMurray’s flood disaster was foreseeable and preventable

Eva Angelyna (Evalyna) Bogdan, University of Waterloo; Daniel Henstra, University of Waterloo, and Jason Thistlethwaite, University of Waterloo

Blaming flooding on an act of God wrongly absolves government and developers of their liability for poor decisions that unfairly burden taxpayers.

A smokey haze from wildfires burning in the region blankets Vancouver, B.C. Shutterstock

June 24, 2019

Climate change puts health at risk and economists have the right prescription

Christopher Ragan, McGill University and Courtney Howard, University of Calgary

From heat stroke to asthma to lyme disease, climate change already poses a serious health risk.

Firefighters battle the Camp Fire as it tears through Paradise, Calif. on Nov. 8, 2018. AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

December 11, 2018

Tragic wildfires will continue until we rethink our communities

Eric B. Kennedy, York University, Canada

Where we build our communities and how we build them has an outsize role in our vulnerability to wildfire.

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