Canada US heatwave: Aerial photos reveal wildfire ‘war zone’ as ‘heat dome’ kills hundreds

Follow live updates below

Satellite video of 'firestorm' over Canada cause 700,000 lightning strikes in one night

A town in British Columbia which experienced record-high temperatures earlier this week has been largely destroyed by wildfire, with at least two deaths reported.

Lytton endured highs of 49.6 C on Tuesday, the day before 1,000 residents from the area were forced to flee their homes because of the encroaching flames.

A couple in their 60s who took cover from the fire died after a power pole collapsed and fell onto them, according to the Vancouver Sun.

By Thursday afternoon, most homes and buildings in Lytton were ruined, said Mike Farnworth, British Columbia’s safety minister.

The British Columbia Wildfire Service reported that the Lytton wildfire was burning out of control over an area of approximately 30 square miles.

Referring to the damage wrought by the flames, John Haugen, acting chief of Lytton First Nation, said: “It was like a war zone last night.”

The wildfires were sparked by an unprecedented heatwave across western Canada and the US, which is believed to have killed hundreds of people in British Columbia and the American states of Oregon and Washington.

Key Points

• Flames destroy town at heart of Canada’s heatwave
• Two reported dead in Canadian wildfire
• Almost 100 wildfires rage through British Columbia
• Heatwave causes Washington state’s largest glacier melt in a century

[2 July 2021 14:00 · Rory Sullivan]

Higher-than-average temperatures to persist in July

Temperature records in parts of the US and Canada have been obliterated in recent days during the current heatwave.

But how long will the scorching heat persist?

The National Weather Service has predicted that temperatures will start falling, but they will remain “well-above average” in the North West and Upper Midwest into July.

The federal agency issued excessive heat-warnings for much of Washington and Oregon on Tuesday until 4 July.

There will also be extremely warm weather elsewhere too, with forecasters predicting that Shoshone, Idaho, for example, will experience 37.2C (99F) to 38.8C (102F) through 15 July.

Read more here:

[2 July 2021 14:17 · Rory Sullivan]

Photo: Lytton ‘90 per cent’ damaged by wildfire

Destroyed town of Lytton, British Columbia (AP)

[2 July 2021 14:40 · Rory Sullivan]

Experts warn of more intense heatwaves due to climate crisis

There will be more intense heatwaves like the one being felt in the Pacific Northwest, experts have warned.

Climate change has probably doubled their likelihood, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Isabelle Gerretsen takes a closer look at the link between climate change and heatwaves:

[2 July 2021 15:03 · Chantal Da Silva]

Mexico water supply affected by worsening drought, putting crops at risk

As the western US and Canada contend with a deadly heatwave, a long-term drought affecting two-thirds of Mexico looks set to worsen over the weeks ahead.

With forecasts warning of high temperatures on the horizon, experts have sounded the alarm that there could be water supply shortages and crop damage ahead.

Already, in some states, Rafael Sanchez Bravo, a water expert at Chapingo Autonomous University told The Associated Press, “irrigation is practically disappearing due to lack of precipitation”.

While rains were just 3 per cent below average across Mexico last year, a strain on water reserves made worse by a surge in domestic demand during the Covid-19 pandemic has prompted concerns.

The need to replenish the country’s reservoirs is dependent on the rainy season, known as the North American Monsoon, which is currently unfolding.

“The next three months will be really crucial in how this drought turns out,” Andreas Prein, an atmospheric scientist for the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, told AP.

Water shortages are common in some parts of Mexico, but extreme heat has exacerbated the the situation, with experts attributing the phenomenon to climate change.

[2 July 2021 15:38 · Chantal Da Silva]

Thank you for following our live coverage of the situation in western US and Canada. This brings an end to our coverage today.