Thursday marks the end of Alberta’s 2024 wildfire season, although nearly 30 total wildfires — all under control — are burning throughout the province.
Alberta Wildfire reported more fires this year compared to the historic 2023 season, but a fraction of area burned, according to a news release the provincial government issued Wednesday.
This season highlighted the significant role early preparation plays, and spending on people, resources and technology “proved invaluable,” said Trevor Lamabe, executive director of the government’s wildfire management branch, in the news release.
Firefighters responded to more than 1,210 wildfires this year, burning more than 705,000 hectares, according to the Alberta Wildfire status dashboard.
The Alberta government declared an early start to the 2024 wildfire season on Feb. 20, as firefighters were still working on 64 zombie fires that carried over from the year before. At the time, the government implemented a fire ban and permit system to prevent further human-caused wildfires.
The cause of 39 fires are still under investigation as of Thursday, the dashboard shows. The agency suspects 620 fires this year were caused by human activity, while almost 560 were caused by lightning.
Alberta, like the rest of Canada, had a record wildfire season in 2023. Alberta Wildfire reported nearly 1,090 wildfires that burned more than 2.2 million hectares combined.
The most significant was the monster fire that ripped through Jasper National Park in July, incinerating about one-third of the homes and businesses in Jasper, Alta. One firefighter died on the job while responding to this fire.
The community, whose residents were evacuated for weeks, is still recovering. The historic townsite has reopened to the public and government officials are encouraging people to visit Jasper, which relies on tourism for its economic prosperity.
A fire near Fort McMurray, Alta., forced some of its residents to evacuate and others to be on alert, triggering memories of The Beast in 2016.
A wildfire also forced the three communities that make up Little Red River Cree Nation, in northern Alberta, to flee. Chipewyan Cree Nation was also evacuated.
Forestry and Parks Minister Todd Loewen, in the government’s news release, described the 2024 wildfire season as challenging, but said co-ordination and Albertans’ resilience were “crucial to mitigating the impact.”
The Alberta government earmarked a $155-million base budget for wildfires, preparing for the potential of another serious wildfire season.
The government recruited 100 more wildland firefighters and 40 more contract wildland firefighters, the release said, adding that Alberta Wildfire had almost 1,900 firefighters, contractors and support staff this year.
The provincial government also secured more airtankers, heavy equipment and helicopters equipped with night vision technology — which allow crews to combat flames overnight, when temperatures are cooler and fire activity may be lower.
In the field, firefighters were able to contain 85 per cent of reported wildfires within 24 hours of detection, the release said.
The news release did not offer an estimate for the total costs of wildfires this year. The Insurance Bureau of Canada estimated in August that the Jasper wildfire, alone, caused $880 million in insured damages.
The Alberta government will continue building on its wildfire management strategies to protect communities and the province’s natural resources, Loewen said in the release.
