TORONTO (Reuters) -The first major wildfires of the season spread across about 10,000 hectares (24,710 acres) in western Canada on Sunday, as authorities issued an evacuation order for a British Columbia community and warned of poor air quality in the provinces .
In British Columbia, thousands of residents of the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality and Fort Nelson First Nations were evacuated as the nearby fire nearly doubled to 4,136 hectares.
Northern Rockies Regional Municipality Mayor Rob Fraser said in a TV interview that most of the 3,500 residents in and around Fort Nelson had been evacuated.
Fort Nelson First Nation, 7 km (4.35 miles) from the city, also issued an evacuation order for Fontas, an Indigenous community.
Across the border in Alberta, residents of Fort McMurray, an oil hub that suffered extensive damage from wildfires in 2016, were asked to prepare to leave.
However, by the end of the day, favorable weather, aided by forecast showers, was able to dampen fire growth in Fort McMurray. Authorities said they expected fire activity to remain low and more showers were expected on Monday.
Alberta continued to emphasize that the two wildfires were extreme and out of control, recording 43 active fires, including one 16 km southwest of Fort McMurray. By Sunday, authorities had revised the area affected by fire to 6,579 hectares, much larger than what was reported on Friday.
Fraser said the fire was started when a tree was blown down by high winds falling onto a power line.
Six crews of wildland firefighters, 13 helicopters and air tankers worked to contain the blaze on Sunday, Alberta authorities said.
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Evacuation warnings were in place for Fort McMurray, Saprae Creek Estates and extended to Gregoire Lake Estates and Rickards Landing Industrial Park.
While there is no immediate risk to these communities, the warning ensures residents are prepared to evacuate if conditions change.
Smoke in Fort McMurray on Saturday came from fires in northern British Columbia, Alberta said.
Environment Canada issued a special air quality statement on Sunday that extends from British Columbia to Ontario.
Last year, a pall of smoke blanketed the US east coast, turning the sky fluorescent orange as smoke reached parts of Europe as hundreds of wildfires burned millions of hectares of land and forced about 120,000 people from their homes.
The federal government has warned that Canada is facing another “catastrophic” wildfire season as it expects higher-than-normal spring and summer temperatures across much of the country, boosted by El Nino weather.
Canada had one of its warmest winters with little to no snow in many areas, raising fears of a hot summer that would spark fires in forests and wildlands amid an ongoing drought.
