Thousands of Canadians were forced to leave their homes in Fort Nelson, British Columbia, due to the threat of wildfire.
The fire broke out on Friday night and was described by authorities as “exhibiting extreme fire behavior.”
The wildfires have also prompted warnings and evacuation orders in the neighboring province of Alberta.
The Canadian government has warned that this year’s weather conditions would mean a greater risk of wildfires in the country.
The Parker Lake fire, as it is called by the British Columbia Wildfire Service (BCWS), was 8 square kilometers (3 square miles) in size Saturday morning after growing rapidly overnight.
About 3,000 people in Fort Nelson – located in northeastern British Columbia, about 1,600 km (1,000 miles) from Vancouver – have been ordered to evacuate.
Rob Fraser, mayor of the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality, said CBC News The fire started after strong winds knocked down a tree, it hit a power line and caught fire.
“And then when our firefighters were able to get there, the wind turned it into a fire that they weren’t able to control with the apparatus that we had,” Fraser said.
Strong winds and dry conditions are making the fire more difficult to fight, according to the BCWS.
Until Saturday, the fire was being fought by nine helicopters, as well as ground teams and a structure protection specialist, whose role is to protect structures affected by forest fires.
In Alberta, people in the Grande Prairie region are under an evacuation warning and some have been asked to leave due to a fire burning 4 km east of the village of TeePee Creek in the northwest of the province.
Residents of Fort McMurray, a city of about 68,000 people, were also told to be ready to leave as an out-of-control fire burns about 25 kilometers southwest of the city.
In parts of Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan, Environment Canada on Saturday issued air quality warnings due to smoke from wildfires.
Last year was a devastating year for wildfires in Canada, with 15 million hectares (37 million acres) of forest burned – the most destructive time in the country’s history.
Eight firefighters died and around 230,000 people were displaced from their homes.
An update from Environment Canada this week predicted challenging weather conditions that could lead to another difficult wildfire season ahead.
Warmer temperatures in spring and summer could “exacerbate the risk and intensity of natural and human-caused wildfires,” officials said.
A warmer than normal winter, which left little snow on the ground, also worsened droughts in several regions.
Globally, last year was the hottest on record. It was driven by human-caused warming, but also driven by a natural climate system called El Niño.
Fires happen naturally in many parts of the world, including Canada.
But climate change is making the weather conditions needed for wildfires to spread more likely, according to the UN climate body.
Extreme and long-lasting heat draws more and more moisture from the soil and vegetation.
