Alberta wildfires not unprecedented in nature, but in societal impact
A local state of emergency was issued in Fort McMurray, Alberta on Sunday, May 1, 2016 as a wildfire started just beyond the city limits. Although evacuations in many parts of the city were voluntary at first, by Tuesday, May 3, a mandatory evacuation notice was sent to all residents in the Fort McMurray area.
As of Sunday, May 8, approximately 90,000 people have been evacuated from Fort McMurray and surrounding areas as the fires continue to spread.
[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]…the journey out of Fort McMurray proved to be a challenge.[/pullquote]Hazel De Borja, a third-year English student at the University of Guelph, has family and friends back in Fort McMurray. De Borja saw the news of the fire on her Facebook feed and was able to stay in touch with her friends and family throughout the evacuation process, including her sister, who had 30 minutes to evacuate her home with two young children in tow. While De Borja’s family were able to safely relocate with other family members in Calgary and Edmonton, the journey out of Fort McMurray proved to be a challenge.
“Going out of Fort Mac, they don’t have highways like the 401, […] there’s just four roads in total—two going one way, two going the other way—and it was absolutely packed,” said De Borja, explaining that the drive to Edmonton from Fort McMurray would normally take about five hours.
For some, the journey took an entire day. De Borja’s sister informed her that there were a lot of people stranded at the side of the road as their vehicles had run out of gas.
University of Guelph alumna Priscilla Lai has been working in Fort McMurray for four years and was living in one of the last areas to be evacuated when the fire continued to spread north.
[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]…a lot of people stranded at the side of the road as their vehicles had run out of gas.[/pullquote]“By 6:30 p.m., I received the message that all of Fort McMurray was under mandatory evacuation,” explained Lai in an email to The Ontarion. “I went to pick up [my coworker] Jessie along with her five parrots […] and one small Maltese dog.”
It took Lai and her coworker six hours to get to a camp where evacuees and their pets could stay.
“One thing that will continue to amaze me for years to come is how the evacuation of almost 90,000 people went without any deaths directly related to the fire,” said Lai.
Though not directly linked to the fire, two people have died in a traffic collision during the evacuation process, according to CBC News.
Lai has since made it safely to Toronto, but like many others, is unsure when she can return to Fort McMurray.
According to a May 10, 2016 release from the Alberta government, the wildfire had grown to 229,000 hectares. Multiple fires continued to burn around Fort McMurray, some with slightly less intensity, but still with no end in sight.
[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]…the wildfire had grown to 229,000 hectares.[/pullquote]“A fire this big will only come under control if the weather changes,” explained Professor Ze’ev Gedalof, an expert on wildfires at the University of Guelph, late last week. “There are not enough wildland firefighters in the world to contain this fire right now. It needs cool, wet conditions before it’s going to go out.”
Gedalof explained that the forest types surrounding Fort McMurray actually rely on fire for regeneration.
“What’s happening in Fort Mac right now is not necessarily at all unnatural in that respect,” said Gedalof. “This is not an ecological disaster—it’s an economic and a sociological disaster.”
While it might be tempting to blame the catastrophe on global warming, Gedalof advises that this would be an oversimplification.
[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“There are not enough wildland firefighters in the world to contain this fire right now. It needs cool, wet conditions before it’s going to go out.”[/pullquote]“We’ve got trees that developed under cooler, wetter conditions, we have global warming, we have a massive El Nino event, and we have an ignition happening in exactly the wrong spot,” explained Gedalof, describing the catastrophe in Fort McMurray as a “perfect storm.”
While speculations have been made that, due to the absence of lightning strikes and proximity to the city, the fire was likely caused by humans, Gedalof believes that the cause of the ignition is almost irrelevant.
“The fuels don’t care if the ignition is caused by a cigarette butt tossed out of a car window or a lightning strike,” explained Gedalof.
Although wildfires are unconcerned with the devastation they can cause, communities and individuals across the country have rallied together to help bring relief to the people of Fort McMurray.
“My heart aches every time I see the photos of the flames overtaking the town and the burnt up houses left in its wake,” said Lai. “At the same time, it is incredibly touching to see all the people reaching out to help.”
Jordan Witkowski, a dispatcher with the University of Guelph’s Campus Community Police, put out a call for donations on the Overheard at Guelph Facebook page on Friday, May 6. Witkowski planned to collect small-size donations from the community, like cash and gift cards. Witkowski also planned on personally driving out to Edmonton on Sunday, May 8 to provide resources and assistance to evacuees in need.
“I made that post […] just to reach out and give an opportunity for others to help if they wished and the response has been incredible to see and something that I did not expect,” explained Witkowski, who views this trip as an opportunity to pay forward the support that his family received when they were personally affected by a house fire four years ago.
Canada’s federal government is also doing its part in funding relief efforts. The Canadian Red Cross Alberta Fires Emergency Appeal donation page states that “All individual donations are being matched by the Government of Canada.” According to Global News, as of May 6, approximately $30 million has been raised through the Canadian Red Cross.
More than a week after the initial ignition, emergency crews and firefighters in Fort McMurray continue to work tirelessly to control the wildfire. According to CBC News, officials have entered the second phase of the response plan, which focuses on stabilizing the situation.