Severe weather · Wildfire smoke
Same fires, different systems.
A single smoke plume can drift from northern Manitoba across the Great Lakes and settle on both sides of a border — but Canada and the United States count fires, warn residents, and measure the air in fundamentally different ways.
Concentrated fire regions · North America
Where the smoke is coming from
- CANorthwest TerritoriesLargest burned area in the country — 255 fires and roughly 1.07M hectares this season, with 19 fires out of control.
- CANorthwestern Ontario30 fires out of control; about 738,000 hectares burned province-wide this season.
- CANorth-central Québec624 fires and roughly 728,000 hectares this season; 107 fires still under monitored response.
- CAManitoba & N. PrairiesNorthern Manitoba (259,000 ha) and Saskatchewan (267,000 ha) — sustained active fire load.
- CABritish ColumbiaHot, dry and windy in the south with more lightning and little rain; 20 fires out of control.
- CANorthern AlbertaNew starts daily in the northern boreal; crossover conditions and extreme heat in the south. Bear Creek Complex in Wood Buffalo NP.
- CAYukon67 fires this season, 21 under monitored response in remote country.
- CACentral LabradorNewfoundland and Labrador at roughly 94,500 hectares this season; fire danger remains elevated.
- USOregon CascadesBusiest state in the country — 21 large fires after repeated lightning outbreaks east of the Cascades.
- USWashington5 large fires; gusty west winds and low humidity east of the Cascades.
- USNorthern California6 large fires, ~82,700 acres — Biscar near Susanville and the Rock Fire the largest.
- USCentral Idaho3 large fires; gusty winds and thunderstorms across the Northern Rockies.
- USWestern Colorado2 large fires including the Keystone Fire near the White River Field Office.
- USNorthern Minnesota6 large fires — an unusual eastern hotspot; smoke pooling across the Upper Midwest.
- USGulf Coast Louisiana2 large fires in dry coastal fuels.
- USSouth Florida2 large fires including the 19,000-acre Berger 50 fire south of South Bay.
Two national snapshots · not a comparison
Each country counts its own fires, its own way.
Canada · August 6, 2026
National preparedness
Level 4 National Preparedness Response declared — the second-highest tier, signalling national resources are fully committed and international support may be requested.
United States · August 6, 2026
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No directly equivalent 'active fires' count
US reports differ in methodology from Canada.