ISTANBUL

Wildfires in western and central Canada have forced more than 26,000 people to evacuate, including communities in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, according to officials and media reports.

The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre reports that 187 fires were burning across Canada as of Sunday, with 97 categorized as “out of control.”

Citing local officials, local media reported that more than 17,000 people have been evacuated in Manitoba, 8,000 people in Saskatchewan and 1,300 in Alberta.

In a post on X, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he convened the federal Incident Response Group as wildfires intensify across the country, prompting evacuations and military assistance.

Carney said Canadian Armed Forces personnel have been deployed to assist with air evacuations in Manitoba, including in the Mathias Colomb Cree Nation community.

He said the federal government will match donations made to the Red Cross for wildfire-affected areas and is working with provinces and Indigenous leaders to ensure the safety of residents.

“The scale and complexity of these air evacuations cannot be overstated,” Carney wrote on X.

Evacuation centers have opened across Manitoba, including one in Winkler, just 12 miles from the US border. According to media reports, fire smoke drifts south into parts of the US, prompting air quality alerts in the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes.

The US Department of Agriculture announced Saturday it has sent an air tanker and 150 firefighters to assist in Alberta.