Bill Blair

Military put on standby to evacuate fire-threatened towns in western Canada

Ottawa prepared on July 2 to send military aircraft and other help to evacuate towns and fight more than 100 wildfires in western Canada fueled by a record-smashing heat wave.

According to wildfire officials, at least 152 fires were active in British Columbia, 89 of them sparked in the last two days. Most were caused by lightning strikes.