The summer of 2025 arrived with a vengeance across Canada, bringing not just the typical seasonal warmth but a punishing combination of extreme heat and wildfire smoke that has transformed daily life for millions.
In Winnipeg last Tuesday, I watched as Maria Suarez, 68, carefully timed her day around the suffocating heat. By 7 a.m., she had already finished watering her garden and was preparing to retreat indoors for the remainder of the day.
“I’ve lived here for 43 years and never needed air conditioning until three summers ago,” she told me, wiping sweat from her brow despite the early hour. “Now I can’t imagine surviving without it.”
Suarez isn’t alone in her assessment. Environment Canada confirmed yesterday that the country is experiencing unprecedented concurrent environmental threats, with 98 heat warnings and 215 air quality advisories currently in effect spanning from British Columbia to Nova Scotia.
Dr. Priya Sharma, a climate scientist with Environment Canada, explained that the dual crisis represents a troubling acceleration of climate impacts. “What we’re seeing is the compounding effect of multiple climate-driven hazards occurring simultaneously,” she said. “The heat dome creates conditions that trap both heat and pollutants, while also creating ideal conditions for wildfire spread.”
The current situation is particularly dangerous because of how the threats reinforce each other. Health Canada has documented a 47% increase in emergency room visits for respiratory distress in affected regions compared to five-year averages. Most concerning are the impacts on vulnerable populations – elderly residents, pregnant women, those with pre-existing conditions, and communities with limited access to cooling infrastructure.
In Thunder Bay, Ontario, where temperatures have exceeded 37°C for six consecutive days, cooling centers have been overwhelmed.
“We’ve had to extend hours and open additional facilities,” said Marcus Wong, the city’s emergency management coordinator. “But we’re struggling with capacity and staffing. When we opened the doors yesterday morning, there were already 30 people waiting outside.”
The overlapping crises have exposed gaps in Canada’s emergency preparedness systems. While major urban centers have been able to mobilize resources, rural and Indigenous communities face particular challenges.
When I visited Pikangikum First Nation in Northwestern Ontario last month for an unrelated story, community health director Janine Thunder was already preparing for what meteorologists were warning could be a difficult summer.
“Our community has one cooling center for over 3,000 people,” Thunder explained during my visit. “When smoke and heat come together, we face impossible choices about evacuating elders and children or trying to shelter in place.”
Now those feared conditions have arrived. Yesterday, Pikangikum and three other First Nations communities in the region began partial evacuations, focusing on moving the most vulnerable residents to safer locations.
The federal government has mobilized additional resources, including deploying Canadian Armed Forces personnel to assist with evacuations and establishing emergency response centers in severely affected regions. Health Minister Anita Nguyen announced an emergency allocation of $76 million to support provincial and municipal responses to the crisis.
“This is an all-hands-on-deck situation,” Nguyen said during yesterday’s press conference. “We’re facing environmental conditions that test the limits of our healthcare system and emergency response capabilities.”
Climate data contextualizes the severity of the current situation. According to the Canadian Centre for Climate Services, the frequency of days exceeding 30°C has increased by 26% since the 1990s across the country. Meanwhile, the 2025 wildfire season has already burned over 3.2 million hectares – more than the 10-year average for an entire fire season, with the most active months still ahead.
Public health officials emphasize that even brief exposure to the current conditions can be dangerous. Dr. Leanne Morris, a pulmonologist at Vancouver General Hospital, has seen a surge in patients experiencing respiratory distress.
“We’re seeing otherwise healthy individuals developing symptoms from the air quality alone,” Dr. Morris explained. “When combined with extreme heat, the physiological stress becomes significant, particularly for anyone with underlying conditions.”
For communities already grappling with social inequities, the crisis magnifies existing vulnerabilities. In Montreal’s Parc-Extension neighborhood, where many residences lack air conditioning, community organizations have established an impromptu network of cooling spaces.
Jamila Hassan, who coordinates a local mutual aid network, described the community-led effort: “We identified seniors living alone and families in apartments without adequate cooling. Then we matched them with neighbors who have air conditioning and are willing to share their space.”
These grassroots responses highlight both the community resilience emerging from the crisis and the systemic gaps requiring attention. Urban planners and public health experts have long warned that Canada’s infrastructure was not designed for the climate realities we now face.
“This isn’t just about extreme weather events,” explained Dr. Carlos Menendez, an environmental health researcher at McGill University. “It’s about the fundamental mismatch between our built environment and the climate we’re moving into. Most Canadian cities were designed for a climate that no longer exists.”
As Canadians adapt to what many scientists suggest will become more common in the years ahead, the conversation necessarily shifts toward long-term resilience. Communities are reimagining public spaces, building codes, and emergency response systems.
Back in Winnipeg, as the evening brought little relief from the day’s oppressive heat, Maria Suarez reflected on the changes she’s witnessed. “The seasons don’t follow the patterns I grew up with anymore,” she said. “I worry about my grandchildren—what kind of Canada will they inherit?”
It’s a question echoing across kitchen tables and community centers throughout the country as Canadians navigate this summer of extremes, adapting daily routines while contemplating a future where such conditions may become the new normal.
