Warm, windy weather pushing wildfire risk higher across Alberta

It’s warming up, windy and dry across much of the province – and one doesn’t need to be a weather expert to know what that means during spring in Alberta.

It’s warming up, windy and dry across much of the province — and one doesn’t need to be a weatherperson to know what that means during spring in Alberta.

That said, experts confirm heading into the weekend, conditions are ripe for wildfires.

“When the relative humidity is lower than the ambient temperature so, for example, if the temperature was 25 C and the relative humidity was below 25 per cent, that’s when we would start seeing crossover conditions,” said Danielle Desjardins, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Crossover is the point at which the relative humidity is less than or equal to the temperature and this is an indicator of extreme burning potential, according to Alberta Wildfire, which said the Slave Lake region was experiencing such conditions on Friday.

It’s a precarious time in Alberta’s wildfire season, when a warm and/or windy day like what presented itself on Friday could lead to fires spreading out of control.

“We need people to be very cautious in the coming days to make sure we don’t inadvertently start any wildfires in these conditions,” Alberta Wildfire information officer Josee St-Onge said on Friday.

It’s dry across northern Alberta, where the province said the fire danger level is high in regions near Fort McMurray, Slave Lake, High Level, Peace River and Lac La Biche.

“High temperatures are expected to continue for the coming days and may include strong winds,” Alberta Wildfire said in the update Friday for the Fort Mac area.