Canada Wildfires Inflict Brutal Toll On Tourism, Other Areas Of Economy

Kelowna, Canada, Sept 2 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Sep, 2023 ) :Joanna Schlosser found refuge from advancing wildfires at a winery where she works, but is now dealing with a tourism downturn and other wide-ranging fallout on the business -- and Canada's economy.

An inferno jumped Okanagan Lake and was barreling down hills behind her Kelowna home when a knock on the door woke up the family of five, ordering them to leave immediately.

For two weeks, they stayed at a guest house at Quails' Gate winery with other evacuees, some of whom lost their homes. About 200 houses in the valley would be destroyed.

"Your home is your biggest investment and with only five minutes to get out you start to reel about things you left behind that you might not ever see again," Schlosser told AFP.

She also fretted about the grape harvest now underway.

None of the 222 wineries in the region reported any direct fire damage. But they suffered a big drop in revenues as tourists stayed away during the peak month of August.

Kelowna's airport and main highway closed temporarily. Tasting tours, weddings and other events at the wineries were cancelled.

"We're now facing a pretty devastating season in terms of winery traffic and sales," said Schlosser.

Across Canada, more than 15 million hectares (37 million acres) have been scorched, and 200,000 people displaced, spanning from Halifax on the Atlantic coast to parts of the Northwest Territories.

Stephen Brown of Capital Economics noted that forest fires do not normally have a measurable impact on the Canadian economy.

But this year, he said in a research note, "with the fires so widespread, we are seeing more of an impact than usual.""The worst Canadian wildfires on record appear to be behind much of the recent weakness in GDP and, with more areas now under evacuation orders, the data are likely to remain weak in the coming months," he said.