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Alberta government warns of lightning sparking wildfires

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The wildfire near Fort McMurray is now classified as under control at 18,593 hectares. | Alberta Wildfire Facebook

The recent rainfall has proved valuable for Alberta’s fight against wildfires, but with rain comes lightning.

Alberta Wildfire Information Unit Manager Christie Tucker explained in a Thursday update how May is typically a time of higher wildfire danger since this is when temperatures warm up and vegetation is still turning green.

“But we always say the greatest indicator of what kind of season we'll have is usually spring rain, and we're grateful for the rain that we've had over the past couple of weeks,” Tucker said.

“Rain brings humidity and can lower wildfire danger, but it can also bring lightning.”

In the past week, six new wildfires have been confirmed as lightning caused.

“Fortunately, our teams are trained, positioned and ready to respond to any new wildfires that start,” Tucker said.

“If there is a fire restriction or ban in place, and there has recently been some rain in your area, please continue to respect the precautions that we are taking to prevent wildfires.”

In areas that have had long periods of drought, larger trees and layers of organic buildup in the forest could take longer to show an improvement.

“There are many parts of the province which are now low in wildfire danger, but in the far northwest and southeast, wildfire danger is still high with pockets showing extreme,” Tucker said.

Tucker later added how wildfires tend to be 60 per cent human caused and 40 per cent lightning caused in Alberta, and the province was now shifting from a period when wildfires are almost exclusively human caused to one where there would be more lightning-caused wildfires.

Out of the 27 active wildfires in the Forest Protection Area of Alberta, two are being held, one is out of control and the rest are under control.

The out-of-control wildfire was detected west of Calgary early Thursday morning and is currently four hectares in size.

Alberta has had 386 wildfires with 28,000 hectares burned so far this year, which is significantly fewer compared to the over 540 wildfires with 1.3 million hectares burned at the same time last year.

“This is encouraging but it's also important to remember that we're still in the early stages of the wildfire season, and conditions and wildfire danger can change quickly,” said Todd Loewen, minister of Forestry and Parks.

“As lightning becomes more prevalent during the wildfire season, it's more important than ever that we do everything we can to prevent human-caused wildfires. These preventable wildfires place unnecessary strain on resources and personnel who are already responding to multiple fires throughout the province.”

Current Weather

Chance of showers

Chance of showers

27.5°C

Pressure
100.9 falling
Dewpoint
4.4 °C
Humidity
23%
Wind
WSW 5 km/h

Radar Satellite


Hourly Forecast

Today
9 PM
24°C
Chance of showers. Risk of thunderstorms
Today
10 PM
21°C
A few clouds
Today
11 PM
18°C
A few clouds
Tomorrow
12 AM
15°C
A few clouds
Tomorrow
1 AM
14°C
Clear
Tomorrow
2 AM
12°C
Clear
Tomorrow
3 AM
11°C
Clear
Tomorrow
4 AM
10°C
Clear
Tomorrow
5 AM
9°C
Clear
Tomorrow
6 AM
8°C
Sunny
Tomorrow
7 AM
11°C
Sunny
Tomorrow
8 AM
13°C
Sunny

7 Day Forecast

Chance of showers

Tonight

8 °C

Partly cloudy with 30 percent chance of showers this evening and risk of a thunderstorm. Clearing late this evening. Low 8.


Chance of showers

Wednesday

28 °C

Sunny early in the morning then a mix of sun and cloud with 30 percent chance of showers in the afternoon. Risk of a thunderstorm in the afternoon. High 28. UV index 8 or very high.


Chance of showers

Wednesday night

10 °C

Mainly cloudy. 30 percent chance of showers early in the evening with risk of a thunderstorm. Low 10.


Showers

Thursday

17 °C

Showers. High 17.


Clear

Thursday night

4 °C

Clear. Low plus 4.


Cloudy

Friday

20 °C

A mix of sun and cloud. High 20.


Cloudy

Friday night

6 °C

Cloudy periods. Low 6.


A mix of sun and cloud

Saturday

21 °C

A mix of sun and cloud. High 21.


Chance of showers

Saturday night

8 °C

Cloudy with 60 percent chance of showers. Low 8.


Chance of showers

Sunday

19 °C

Cloudy with 60 percent chance of showers. High 19.


Chance of showers

Sunday night

9 °C

Cloudy periods with 60 percent chance of showers. Low 9.


A mix of sun and cloud

Monday

23 °C

A mix of sun and cloud. High 23.


Normals

Low
7 °C
High
21 °C

Sunrise and Sunset

Sunrise
5:32 AM
Sunset
10:21 PM

Based on Environment Canada data

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