Wildfires in Alberta: help from 60 Quebec firefighters and support staff

QUEBEC CITY — Three groups of 20 Quebec firefighters each fly Monday to Alberta to lend a hand for two weeks to their colleagues who are struggling with several forest fires.

The Society for the Protection of Forests Against Fire (SOPFEU) specifies that the 60 firefighters leave from the airports of Quebec and Val-d’Or. They are accompanied by two agency representatives, two meteorologists, two strike team leaders, a helicopter operations coordinator, a fire behavior specialist and a logistics section manager.

All staff come from all over Quebec.

The Government of Quebec is a signatory to the Canadian Agreement on Mutual Aid in the Event of Forest Fires.

The situation prevailing in Quebec, the higher humidity levels and recent precipitation allow SOPFEU to lend resources to its colleagues in other provinces without affecting its ability to intervene on Quebec territory.

Since the start of the protection season in Quebec, the 298 fires fought in the intensive protection zone have affected nearly 232 hectares of forest. On average, 359 fires are started each year, affecting just over 18,715 hectares of forest.