Canada Wildfires: More Than 800 Blazes Trigger Hazardous Air Across Canada and US
Smoke from hundreds of uncontrolled wildfires spreads across North America, forcing evacuations, disrupting air quality, and renewing climate concerns.
Wildfire smoke blankets North American cities as hundreds of fires continue burning across Canada.
Canada Wildfires continue to intensify as more than 800 active blazes burn across the country, sending thick smoke into several northern US states and triggering widespread air quality alerts.
According to the Canadian Wildland Fire Information System, 858 wildfires are currently active across Canada, including 30 new fires reported on Thursday. Most of the fires remain out of control, with northwestern Ontario experiencing the largest concentration.
Dense smoke from the Ontario wildfires has significantly reduced air quality across Thunder Bay and Toronto, while upper-level smoke has drifted over the Great Lakes and into parts of New York State. Residents in affected areas have reported hazy skies and unusually red sunrises and sunsets.
The US National Weather Service (NOAA) has issued air quality alerts covering the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes region, and parts of the Northeast. Air quality has reached hazardous levels in northern Michigan and Minnesota, prompting health officials to advise residents to stay indoors and limit outdoor activities.
Western New York has recorded very unhealthy air conditions, while the New York City metropolitan area remains under unhealthy air quality. City officials have extended emergency heat measures, opened hundreds of cooling centres, and distributed KN95 face masks to protect residents from smoke exposure.
Smoke is expected to continue drifting south through the weekend as northwesterly winds push pollution across the northern United States. Forecasters are monitoring conditions in New Jersey, where concerns remain over air quality ahead of Sunday’s FIFA World Cup final. Meteorologists expect shifting wind patterns early next week to redirect the smoke toward Quebec, improving conditions across much of the northeastern US.
Air quality monitoring company IQAir ranked Detroit as the city with the world’s worst air quality on Thursday, followed by Minneapolis, Chicago, and Toronto.
The ongoing wildfire crisis has also sparked political debate. Republican lawmakers in Michigan sent an open letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, urging stronger wildfire management after repeated smoke events affected US communities for a third consecutive year.
US Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra praised firefighters from both countries and highlighted continued cross-border cooperation in responding to the emergency.
Environmental experts say climate change has contributed to increasingly severe wildfire seasons across Canada. Laura Chasmer, a geography and environment professor at the University of Western Ontario, said rising temperatures and prolonged surface drying have increased both the frequency and intensity of wildfires since 2015.
She noted that large fires, once concentrated mainly in western Canada, now increasingly affect Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic provinces, exposing millions of people in major cities to prolonged smoke events.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada remains in close communication with provincial governments and local communities while stressing that both Canada and the United States share responsibility for addressing climate change.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford defended his government’s response, confirming that more than 150 firefighting crews remain deployed and pledged to provide whatever resources are necessary to contain the fires.
The wildfires have also forced evacuations in several northern Ontario First Nations communities. Namaygoosisagagun First Nation Chief Helen Paavola said aerial inspections revealed that much of her community had been destroyed, describing it as “burnt to ashes.”
