2014 Northwest Territories fires

The 2014 forest fire season in the Northwest Territories of Canada is reputed to be the worst for at least three decades.[1] As of 3 July, there had been 123 fires reported in the territory, of which at least 92 were still active and 13 were thought to be human-caused. By 9 July the total had reached 164 fires[2] and on 10 July over 130 fires were thought to be burning. The smoke generated by the fires was blown into the Prairie Provinces and created a moderate health risk there leading Environment Canada to declare an air quality advisory for southern Saskatchewan and Manitoba on 9 July.[2]

2014 Northwest Territories Fires
Ashes from the fires on the hood of a car in Yellowknife
Location	Northwest Territories, Canada
Statistics
Cost	$44.37 million (2014 USD)
Date(s)	Summer 2014
Burned area	3,500,000 ha (8,600,000 acres)
Cause	Lightning, human error
Deaths	Unknown
Non-fatal injuries	Unknown

The smoke reached as far away as Bismarck, North Dakota, over 2,000 km (1,200 mi) south.[3] The smoke was also observed drifting north into Nunavut[4] and east to the Maritime Provinces and as far as Portugal.[5] By 8 July the largest fires were the Lutselk'e fire at 31,000 ha (77,000 acres) and the Gamèti-Wekweeti fire at 25,000 ha (62,000 acres). By 9 July an area of 5,000 km² (1,900 sq mi) had been consumed, about the size of the island of Trinidad.[6]

As of 18 September 2014, the Government of the Northwest Territories estimated that 3,500,000 ha (8,600,000 acres) of forest had been burnt and that the fire fighting cost C$55 million ($44.37 million USD).[1]

One study suggested that a record number of lightning ignitions during 2014 drove a significant amount of the fires.[7] The Northwest Territories complex emitted 164 teragrams of carbon (TgC).[7]