Quebec Wildfires: More Evacuations Ordered in Northwestern Quebec

A controlled burn is seen on the edge of a wildfire numbered 334 near Mistissini, Que., in a June 6, 2023, handout photo. The Canadian Press/HO-SOPFEU, Genevieve Poirier

Officials in northwestern Quebec have ordered residents of two villages near the Ontario border to leave their homes as a wildfire continues to spread in the area.

Residents of the villages of Val-Paradis and Beaucanton, home to around 340 people, were given an hour and a half to evacuate on Friday night due to the approach of a nearby fire.

Local officials said winds blew the flames away from the village Friday night but that a fire currently burning in Ontario continues to head towards the area and that the two fires will likely become a single blaze.

Since Thursday, more than 6,000 people have been ordered to leave their homes in northwestern Quebec due to heavy smoke from the fires.

In Obedjiwan, an Atikamekw community, officials encouraged people not to go into the forest to check on their cabins.

A video circulating on social media appears to show members of the community running from flames.

“I’m closely monitoring the current wildfires in the Haute-Mauricie region and I’m in contact with the authorities,” Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne tweeted in response to the video.

Firefighters said there was heavy smoke in the community.

Quebec’s wilderness firefighting agency said five new fires were reported in the province Friday.

The agency, known as SOPFEU, said in a daily update there are more than 110 fires burning in the province and 25 are considered out of control.

SOPFEU is asking Quebecers not to launch fireworks or light bonfires as part of their celebrations of the provincial Fête Nationale holiday on Saturday.

Outdoor fires are banned in much of Quebec, except for some regions south of the St. Lawrence river and the island cities of Montreal and Laval.