Saskatchewan is really feeling the heat this summer with more than 103 active fires, and the total number of wildfires in the province so far in 2021 has already reached over 300.
It’s a cause for concern for many and Layne Jackson, Regina’s fire chief, says residents can never be too fire safe, especially when it comes to a hot and dry season like this one.
“A few things we want to remind them about is the use of BBQs, fire pits and smoking,” said Jackson on Tuesday.
“Those are some of the leading causes of fire when it comes to grass, land and wildland fires,” he added.
Although Regina’s fire department isn’t tasked with heading up north, climate experts are paying close attention to what recent heat waves across the country mean.
David Sauchyn, a climate scientist at the University of Regina, is reminding others of the link between the more frequently intense hot and dry temperatures and an ever-escalating climate crisis.
“We didn’t expect heat this extreme, nearly this soon,” Sauchyn explained.
“What I mean by that is we access information from climate models, these models insinuate the models of the world produce heat waves in the future, but we’re talking decades in the future for heat waves of this severity and it happened to occur now,” he added.
Sauchyn goes on to say prioritizing staying cool, especially for vulnerable populations and having the infrastructure to do so, will be of paramount importance moving forward.
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