It's very bad Bugger, I live in Edmonton from my house I cannot even see the city skyline, when it is very visible on any normal day, the smoke is very thick, and the sun is blotted out. Really bad!
I heard that smoke from Alberta and British Columbia is hitting you guys too, really sucks hey? It's amazing how the temperature drops big time. Can't even imagine what a Nuclear Winter would be like.
Last night I heard on the news here that the USA has sent a lot of troops to Alberta to help fight these fires, greatly appreciated by this Canadian!
I took this picture of the Sun yesterday on an otherwise bluebird day. You can look directly at the Sun and this is when the smoke abated quite a bit.
Just got back from a 2 week evacuation of our town..Drayton Valley. They managed to keep the fire out of town, it went around the south side of town. Only 5 houses lost and many outbuildings in the farmland around town. Replacing about 600-700 power poles on rural roads. Big fires west of town now blowing mostly to the northwest, some of them are 40 -50 mile long burn paths and several miles wide. Rather smokey to say the least. We need the wind to die down and desperatly need rain. It was started by a lawn mower southeast of town 3 weeks ago. Fire was extinguished before it went anywhere... so they thought but never sent anyone to monitor it after, a week later the winds came up, must have been a hot spot, it reignited and took off and turned into a monster. Had they checked on it it would have never happened.
As fire is a bit of an annual thing anymore with us in rural southern BC, it's something we can speak to with a wee bit too much familiarity.
I'm glad to read your place is okay and there wasn't more damage than that.
Strangely enough, we had a really heavy snow pack, a cool spring so far and then over an inch of rain in the past couple days which were accompanied by lightning, but it seems enough rain kept any fires down to a minimum.
Thanks again and here's hoping the weather we have wanders over your way.
Thanks Dwayne, I evacuated to Lillooet BC where I used to live and stayed with friends. I wish we had gotten the rain that they got, creeks and highways blown out with the water. Unusual for there.
Also forgot to mention that our rifle range got partially burned out Pistol range survived along with the prone belly shooters steel shack, but lost the rifle range pole shack shelter and 3 sea cans burned up with all our maintenance equipment and such in them. Concrete benches still standing. Our electrical room sea can was unscathed so not all is lost, I expected more damage but thankful and fortunate with what little we did lose. Will be doing some volunteering until we get it back up and running.
The construction company that my wife has been with for 34 years built Ft. Berens Estate Winery so we dropped in for a taste and to take a look at it when we wandered through last time, but that might be 5 years ago now.
I'm sorry to hear about the gun range, but as you say between some volunteer work and fund raising hopefully it'll be up and running 100% sooner than later.
Fire is a mixed blessing for sure in that we've found it great for the wildlife for the most part, but not much fun when one is in the middle of it.
We had 20 minutes to get out with the Vaseux Fire in '03 and then were on alert with the Thomas Creek Fire in '21. The Nk'Mp Fire was going on at the same time and burned up the other side of what the Thomas Fire didn't get on the mountain behind the house - well nearly so.
Nonetheless I was up picking morels on Friday and was amazed at how much growth has come in already in the second spring.
Thanks again and all the best to you all as you put life back together.
Bugger: Yes the smoke was so thick here in SW Montana that I could not see a measured .7 mile one morning! I hope you folks in Canada can get things under control. I am amazed that so many fires can get going in mid-May??? I have been here for 26 years now and this is the first smoke health alerts I have seen issued in May! Luckily (after 8 days of smokieness) the wind has turned around today and the winds are now blowing towards the north - much clearer (healthier) air here today. One of my out of state Hunters who left here yesterday morning was greatly (painfully) affected by the bad smoke. Again I hope the Canucks" can get those fires contained - a few days ago our news reported 87 Canadian fires, 24 of which were zero percent contained. Yikes on that. Hold into the wind VarmintGuy
Here is a video taken May 5th outside Edson --- I imagine much the same played out for areas around Drayton Valley, Swan Hill, Fox Creek and other areas.