Ottawa, July 16 (IANS) Wildfires sweeping across northwestern Ontario, Canada, in recent days have caused severe smog and a sharp deterioration in air quality in several regions, including Ottawa, the nation’s capital, and Toronto, Canada’s largest city.
On Wednesday (local time), Toronto’s air quality index ranked the worst among major global cities. According to data released by Environment Canada, Toronto’s Air Quality Health Index was classified as “very high risk.” Ottawa also issued air quality alerts due to a combination of wildfire smoke and humid weather, with high humidity trapping smoke particles in the air and turning the sky yellow.
Meanwhile, a video widely circulated on social media showed a Canadian National (CN) train surrounded by raging wildfires near Armstrong, Ontario. The footage, filmed late Monday by a locomotive crew member, showed towering flames engulfing the woods on both sides of the train and casting an intense red glow throughout the locomotive cab.
CN on Wednesday confirmed the authenticity of the video, adding that the train crew had been safely evacuated.
Currently, more than 100 active fires are still burning in northwestern Ontario, forcing the emergency evacuation of residents from several communities. CN has also announced a temporary suspension of train operations in the affected section, reports Xinhua news agency.
Weather authorities warned that due to prevailing airflow and wind patterns, the heavy smog is expected to persist for several more days.
In just the past five years, Canada has witnessed a concerning rise in severe weather occurrences.
The country is heating up at a rate more than double that of the global average, with the Canadian Arctic experiencing temperatures nearly three times greater than the global rate.
Rampant wildfires, fatal droughts, and devastating floods indicate that the climate in Canada is already transforming, with scientists and experts cautioning that these events are expected to escalate.
–IANS
sd/
