Page 9 - Newspaper RZ Times

27 August 2025 | Wed THE RZ TIMES Issue 007

Canada’s fire forecast looks bad. The impacts could firefighters since the country’s record-breaking

spill across the border into the US Source : CNN NEWS 2023 fire season.
Some fires from the past two years also
poured smoke into large population centers in
Canada and the US, cratering air quality and
ushering in orange-tinted, apocalyptic-looking
skies.
Planet-heating fossil fuel pollution is tipping
the odds that wildfire seasons like 2023 and
2024 – Canada’s worst season on record and its
second-worst season of the century, respectively
– won’t remain outliers for long.
Western Canada is likely to be the epicenter
for fires this season. The region is at a greater
risk for destructive wildfires than provinces
further east, like Ontario and Quebec, because
it experiences drier and windier conditions.
Wildfires can happen at any time of the
year, but May is typically the month where fire
activity starts to pick up in Western Canada,
according to Richard Carr, a wildfire research
analyst and meteorologist with the Canadian
Forest Service.
“Generally, we start to see a few small fires
pop up in March and a few in April, but things
It could be another dangerously smoky house for the US: Violent wildfires have already don’t usually get going until we get into May or
summer for some in the United States as Canada raged in multiple states this year, millions were beyond,” Carr explained, but noted fires have
prepares for a busy wildfire season with forecasts under red flag warnings this week and an active started to crop up earlier than normal in recent
also signaling extreme heat is in store for both summer is on the horizon. years. “Before we get vegetation greening up
countries in the coming months. In Canada, wildfires have scorched tens completely, it’s more susceptible to burning,”
But when it comes to wildfire threats this of millions of acres, displaced hundreds of Carr said. Western Canada’s fire season in
season, the call is also coming from inside the thousands of people and killed multiple
severity in the late spring.
WHETHER

breakingtemperatures, shades represent areas
Texas is feeling an early by location, across where the average
temperature has an
the country. Here
heat wave. It’s a sign of are places where high increased chance of
a long, hot summer to temperature records being warmer or cooler
could be broken over
than usual. Gray areas
come Source : CNN NEWS the next three days. are expected to be near
Forecasters from
normal.
the National Weather Predictions often
Service also try hold true, breaking
US heat risk forecast: See to predict average daily high temperature
temperatures across
records. This map
where Americans are at the regions of the country highlights locations
over the coming weeks. across the continental
most risk for extreme heat This map shows the United States

this year Source : CNN NEWS chance that areas where temperatures
of the continental
exceeded calendar day
United States will records, according
High temperatures the severity and be above, below or to the Southeastern
affect public health unusualness of forecast near normal average Regional Climate
across wide swaths of heat and its potential temperatures. Darker Center.
A dangerous round of early season extreme the United States each duration, while also
heat is on tap for parts of Texas this week in a summer, causing spikes factoring the likely
prelude to what’s expected to be an abnormally in emergency room impact on residents in
hot summer across much of the United States. visits and hundreds of specific locations based
Long-standing records could fall across heat-related deaths. on CDC data for past
central and southwest Texas, including in Austin As temperatures rise, effects, such as deaths.
and San Antonio, as temperatures reach highs CNN is tracking This map shows
that would be unusual for mid-summer, let alone extreme heat the latest forecast. As
early-to-mid May. conditions and the the planet warms, heat
More than 7 million people in Texas are potential risk for waves are now more
under heat alerts from the National Weather Americans each day. common, intense
Service Tuesday and Wednesday, with one To help prepare and long-lasting,
forecast office calling this early-season heat wave Americans for and temperatures are
“potentially historic.” the dangerous warming even faster
On Wednesday, more than 5 million temperatures, the overnight — not
people — including in Austin and San Antonio National Weather cooling down enough
— will be under the weather service’s first Service and the to offer relief. As
extreme heat warning. The new terminology, US Centers for those temperatures
replacing the agency’s “excessive” heat warning, Disease Control rise, heat records
is meant to emphasize the dangers of these and Prevention has will also fall. The
temperatures. Millions of people in central a national forecast weather service each
Texas, including the Austin metro area, will be predicting heat-related day releases a forecast
in the National Weather heat risk Wednesday. risks. It considers for potential record-

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