Just four months into 2024 and Alberta firefighters have already dealt with hundreds of wildfires.
According to the ministry of forestry and parks, 148 wildfires have already been extinguished this year, with 50 still burning.
Of these remaining wildfires, 46 of them are considered under control, while the other four are being held in fairly remote areas.
At the start of the year there were 64 wildfires were still burning from 2023, and since the New Year, over 500 hectares have been burned.
Compared to 2023, one of the world wildfire seasons in Canadian history, this year has already burned 400 more hectares.
In Sturgeon County, they’ve already dealt with 14 grass and brush fires throughout the season, with fires appearing several weeks earlier than usual.
One of these fires, which happened in late March, got out of control and spread to around 2,500 square feet.
Wildfire season was declared 10 days ahead of time, on February 20. This unusually dry and hot weather has led to several fire restrictions, advisories, and bans being placed in the area.
You can see a list of all fire bans in the area on the Alberta Fire Bans website.
