By Aaron Bolton MONTANA PUBLIC RADIO
Montana firefighters will join others from around the U.S. in helping Canadian fire crews battle 100 active fires in Alberta.
The National Interagency Coordination Center is sending more firefighting resources to assist Canadian crews that have been fighting active and out-of-control wildfires for weeks.
The coordination center fulfilled Canada’s first request for support last week, including two Montana hotshot crews.
It’s now sending 85 firefighters and incident managers, some from Montana, as well as more firefighting equipment. There are over 600 U.S. personnel and firefighting resources now assigned to fires in Alberta.
Smoke from the fires has blanketed most of Montana and North Dakota. Many communities have experienced unhealthy levels of smoke, but some have reached hazardous air quality.
