Case Study: Alberta Wild Fire Flashcards
When and for how long did the fire occur?
• Lasted for two months
• 1st May - 5th July 2016 - some areas were still smouldering until the following spring.
How many people died because of the fire?
0 deaths
How many homes & businesses were destroyed?
2,400 homes & businesses destroyed
What were the impacts on services such as power and water?
• Power supplies disrupted.
• Water supplies contaminated as untreated water was deliberately introduced into the municipal water supply to assist firefighters.
Cost of the fire
• Costliest natural disaster in Canadian history.
• CAN$9 bn of damage to Fort McMurray (insurance company
estimate).
Effect on oil
• 51% of the labour force in Fort McMurray were employed in the oil and gas industry and production was halted to the north of Fort McMurray. 600 work camps were destroyed by the fire).
• 1.2 million barrels of oil were lost per day for 14 days. This equates to a loss of $1 billion (0.3% of Alberta’s GDP in 2016).
• Global price of oil effected
How many hectares of land was destroyed? What was the effect of this?
• 600 000 hectares
• The intensity of the fire severely affected the boreal forest
ecosystem due to the scorched soil and burned tree roots.
• Habitat loss - 500 species lost their habitats.
• Tree species composition and forest type has been altered.
What was the effect on the air?
• Millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere.
• Toxic air pollution due to the burning of cars, factories, and buildings. Mercury and Lead detected as far away as the Gulf Coast.
What was the effect on water?
• Air pollution has led to the contamination of water supplies. Mercury and lead have been detected in the Athabasca River.
• Ash washed into rivers affecting aquatic species.
Positive feedback look from Alberta
• A positive feedback loop was created when the fire created its own weather patterns, triggering lightning which ignited new fires.
Political impacts of Alberta
• The fire fuelled debate about possible impacts of climate change and increased vulnerability in the future – fire season may be lengthened by earlier spring melts.
• Government officials oversaw evacuation programmes and liaised with emergency services.
How many people were evacuated?
90,000 evacuated (Including a third of the 25,000 workers in the nearby tar sands industry were evacuated).
What was meteorological information used for?
To predict the likely direction of the fire
Apart from the usual emergency services, who else was mobilised?
Canadian armed forces
What helped update residents?
News coverage and social media were used to update residents. An online registry was created to help evacuees find accommodation.
