The City of Calgary and surrounding communities were placed under a poor quality statement Monday evening.

Two fires are close to the Sooke Reservoir where many people living in Victoria get their drinking water.

The B.C. Wildfire Service is ramping up its spring training program as wildfire season approaches, but it will be a very different process due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Research around wildfire smoke has drawn links with diseases of the heart and lungs. Wildfires can also have mental health effects.

Premier John Horgan says after two of the worst fire seasons in B.C. history, he is definitely worried.

Elsewhere in the province, Victoria and Fort St. John reported the driest March on record with 11 and 0.2 millimetres of rain, respectively.

The provincial government is also touting its firefighting budget increase, which is up to $101 million from $64 million last year.

Firefighters have contained California's record-setting Mendocino Complex Fire, which burned across an area far larger than most major cities in Canada and the United States.

The provincial government is boosting funding and scrapping cost-sharing requirements for local governments and First Nations to help reduce wildfire risks around their communities.

After opening up just two weeks ago, the evacuation centre is full of pets in need.