A deadly heat wave swept through the United States and Canada, triggering a fire that "engulfed" small Canadian towns

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Due to the rare "high temperature dome" phenomenon, western Canada and the northwestern United States have recently been in the midst of a deadly heat wave. According to foreign media reports on July 1, after the western Canadian town of Lyton set a new high temperature record for three consecutive days, the forest fire caused by the high temperature has "swallowed" the town. Most of the town's houses and buildings have burned down, and thousands of people have been evacuated in and around the town of Lytton.

"Our poor town of Lyton has disappeared." Edith Loring Kuhanga, a local resident, wrote on social media: "It was a devastating blow – we were all shocked! We, the inhabitants, have lost everything. ”

At 6 p.m. local time on June 30, due to the rapid spread of the fire, Jan Polderman, the mayor of The Town of Lilton, ordered the evacuation of more than 250 residents.

Footage from witnesses showed the fire destroying trees and buildings, and residents scrambling to drive away from the town. Due to the rapid spread of the fire, many residents fled without taking anything with them except the clothes they were wearing.

Officials in British Columbia, Canada, said the impact of the fire was still being assessed, that "most of the houses and buildings" in Lyton had disappeared, that ambulance stations and police station facilities had also been burned down, and that residents were still unaccounted for.

Jan Boulderman told the BBC he was "lucky to get out alive" and that "Lytton won't have much left, there's fire everywhere".

Three consecutive times this week, the town of Lytton broke Canada's highest temperature ever, according to Reuters. The highest temperature on the 27th was 46.6 degrees Celsius, the highest temperature on the 28th was 47.9 degrees Celsius, and on June 29, the Lyton temperature reached 49.6 degrees Celsius, breaking the previous record of 45 degrees Celsius in Canada in 1937.

On June 30, strong winds also blew up, reaching a speed of 71 kilometers per hour, further exacerbating the fires.

The heat has led to a surge in the number of deaths locally. According to the British Columbia Coroner's Service on the 30th, the province reported at least 486 sudden deaths in 5 days, almost three times the number of deaths in the province in the same period before.

At the same time, an unprecedented heat wave hit the northwest of the United States, and the death toll in the United States continued to rise.

According to the Associated Press, 60 people died in the U.S. state of Oregon due to extreme heat. There are also 20 deaths in Washington state. Seattle, Portland and other cities in the United States also broke the highest temperatures ever recorded, with some areas exceeding 46 degrees Celsius.

Kristie Ebi, a professor at the University of Washington, said that due to climate change, temperature patterns will continue to change, average temperatures will rise, and heat waves will be more extreme, more frequent and longer lasting.

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Column Editor-in-Chief: Yang Liqun Text Editor: Yang Liqun Caption Source: Xinhua News Agency Photo Editor: Cao Liyuan

Source: Author: Qiu Wenhan