Thousands flee as First Nations bear the brunt of Canada’s wildfires

Grist reports that more than nine hundred wildfires are burning across Canada, and First Nations communities are bearing the worst of it. Thirteen Nations are under evacuation orders that have forced more than two thousand people from their homes, and the Namaygoosisagagun First Nation watched a fast-moving blaze destroy nearly its entire community in under an hour, sending residents fleeing by boat. Compounding the crisis, Grist says the community is being denied federal emergency aid because Ottawa does not formally recognize it as a First Nation, even as its leaders warn it may lose the chance to rebuild altogether.

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