There's some pretty serious stuff happening up in Canada. The government department called Natural Resources Canada just gave a warning that wildfires are going crazy all over the country. Can you believe it? Right now, there are over 1,000 fires burning!
Out of Control
Out of those 1,052 fires, a whopping 791 of them are completely out of control. That means they're spreading like crazy and no one can stop them. Yikes!
Forced to Flee
These wildfires are causing a lot of trouble for people. In fact, 284 evacuation orders have been issued, and over 232,000 Canadians have had to leave their homes. Some of them had to travel really far, like 1,800 kilometers (that's about 1,118 miles) just to find safety. Imagine having to leave your home and go that far!
Record-Breaking Season
<p>This wildfire season is breaking all the records. So far, a mind-blowing 16.5 million hectares (that's about 40.77 million acres) have burned. That's way more than the previous record of 7.6 million hectares (18.7 million acres) set back in 1989. It's crazy how much land is being destroyed by these fires!
What's Next?
Unfortunately, the experts are saying that these fires will keep going for a while. Michael Martin, a director at Natural Resources Canada, said that in September, there's a chance that even more fires will break out in central Canada. That's not good news at all.
Fighting the Flames
But don't worry, there are brave firefighters working hard to put out these fires. So far, 5,821 Canadian firefighters and 4,990 international firefighters have been battling the flames. They're doing an amazing job, but sadly, four firefighters have lost their lives since July. Let's keep them in our thoughts.
Help is on the Way
Earlier this summer, the Canadian government announced a new program to fight these wildfires and deal with the changing climate. They're putting CAN$28 million (that's about US$20.46 million) into this program over the next five years. With this money, they'll be able to hire 1,000 more community firefighters and also include Indigenous knowledge of fire management. It's great to see them taking action!
