Nova Scotia wildfires trigger mass evacuations as vast smoke plumes impact US air quality

‘There are properties that are unharmed close to properties that are destroyed. It’s terrible to see. These are people’s homes,’ Halifax’s deputy fire chief David Meldrum said

Firefighters are being drafted in to help fight huge wildfires tearing across the Canadian province of Nova Scotia.

Around 16,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in the suburbs around the provincial capital Halifax. Fires continue to burn out-of-control for the fourth day, at an unprecedented scale and intensity, according to local officials.

Fire officials were hoping for a break in the dry, windy weather but that’s not forecast to happen until Friday night at the earliest.

US firefighters from New York and New Hampshire will join Canadian crews from Saturday, according to an update from the provincial government.

Satellite images released on Wednesday revealed plumes of smoke spreading down the eastern seaboard which are so large that they’re affecting air quality in New York City around 600 miles away.

Hazy skies and poor air quality are expected to continue through Wednesday in the Northeast.

Halifax’s deputy fire chief David Meldrum said that none of the 16,000 evacuees will be able to return home for now.

Another 2,000 people who fled a much larger uncontained fire in southwestern Nova Scotia also are being kept away from their properties.

“I would recommend that everyone anticipate, given the weather forecast, (not) making plans for re-entry,” Chief Meldrum told a news briefing. He said the 3.2 mile- fire northwest of the port city’s downtown grew slightly overnight and could flare up again in the warmer than usual weather.

Crews are actively engaged in fighting the fires but the size of the infernos have made containment efforts challenging.

Fire officials say an estimated 200 structures, including 151 homes, have been destroyed since the fire started in the Upper Tantallon area on Sunday afternoon.

No deaths or injuries have been reported, but “it’s the site of a tragedy,” Meldrum said.

“There’s widespread destruction, and there’s a level of randomness that comes with wildfires when they hit ... where people live. There are properties that are unharmed close to properties that are destroyed. It’s terrible to see. These are people’s homes,” the deputy fire chief said.

The overwhelming majority of climate scientists agree that, although fire is part of the ecosystem in some regions, the climate crisis is making wildfires more frequent and intense overall.

Wildfires are part of a vicious cycle of the climate crisis. They spew vast amounts of carbon emissions into the atmosphere, in turn increasing global temperatures which further dry out the land and vegetation, making it more susceptible to catching fire.

With reporting from the Associated Press