Category: Quebec

Most Residents of Northern Quebec Town Return After Wildfire Threat, but Risks Remain

The mayor of a northern Quebec town said Monday that firefighters were making progress combating a nearby forest fire, but he warned residents to be prepared should a new evacuation order be issued. About two-thirds of residents of Lebel-sur-Quévillon, Que., began returning home over the weekend after officials lifted a 17-day evacuation order due to…


Rain Should Help Quebec Firefighting Effort as More Than 7,200 People Still Evacuated

Rain in the forecast and the arrival of more foreign reinforcements are raising hopes that Quebec’s more than 7,000 fire evacuees will be able to return home in the coming days, the province’s public security minister said Tuesday. François Bonnardel told reporters that rain showers and cooler temperatures should be moving into northwestern Quebec, where…


Quebec Forces Palliative Care Homes to Offer Assisted Suicide

A new Quebec law that mandates palliative care facilities to provide medical assistance in dying has drawn criticism from euthanasia opponents and a palliative care advocate. Bill 11 to expand medical assistance in dying (MAiD) passed in Quebec’s national assembly on June 7.  In a June 5 post online, Living with Dignity (Vivre Dans La…


Accused in Quebec Daycare Bus Crash That Killed Two Kids Has Case Postponed to August

The court case of a Quebec man accused of killing two young children by driving a city bus into a Montreal-area daycare was postponed on Tuesday to the end of August. Pierre Ny St-Amand was arrested after a city bus crashed into the front of a daycare in the Ste-Rose neighbourhood of Laval, Que., on…


‘Worst Wildfire Season:’ Quebec Makes Progress as Wind Fuels Flames out West

Quebec was on the offensive in its battle against a record wildfire season as gusting winds fuelled growing blazes out West, and the federal government said it would provide free travel documents and visa extensions for people affected across the country. “This now qualifies, unfortunately, as Canada’s worstwildfire season of the 21st century,” Emergency Preparedness…


Quebec Makes Progress Against Record Wildfire Season as Blaze in BC Grows

Quebec is on the offensive in its battle against a record wildfire season as gusty winds fuel a huge blaze in northeastern British Columbia, forcing more evacuations. Premier François Legault says there are now more than 1,200 people fighting fires across the province, including reinforcements from New Brunswick and France, and thousands of Quebecers are…


Crosses From New Zealand Shipwreck Sent to Quebec in Honour of 19Th-Century Patriot

A pair of wooden crosses made from a shipwreck in New Zealand have been sent to Quebec to honour the 185-year-old wish of a francophone man who rebelled against British rule. François-Xavier Prieur was one of dozens of Patriots who were exiled to Australia aboard the HMS Buffalo as punishment for their part in the…


Quebec Now Taking the Offensive Against Forest Fires: Natural Resources Minister

Quebec’s natural resources minister says wilderness firefighters are now taking the offensive against the province’s forest fires instead of just reacting to the blazes. Maïté Blanchette Vézina says coordinated attacks against the fires are now possible due to reinforcements from other jurisdictions, including a team of wilderness firefighters from France. She says there are still…


‘The Battle Isn’t Won’: Next 48 Hours Crucial in Quebec Wildfire Fight: Bonnardel

The next 48 hours will be crucial in Quebec’s wildfire fight in northern and western parts of the province, Public Security Minister François Bonnardel said Saturday, with authorities hoping the situation remains stable ahead of rain forecast for early next week. Bonnardel told reporters that warmer temperatures and lower humidity levels will precede the moment…


International Reinforcements Arrive in Quebec as 140 Wildfires Still Burning

Dozens of firefighters from France have arrived in Quebec, where they’ll join the fight against the more than 140 fires burning across the province. Quebec’s forest fire prevention agency says the French firefighters are expected to head today to Roberval, in the province’s Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean, for a briefing before they begin fighting fires. There are 141…