President Joe Biden spoke with his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau on Wednesday, offering to provide federal assistance in addressing the ongoing wildfires in Canada that have resulted in significant air quality challenges across the eastern United States.
What Happened: The White House, in a readout of the call between two leaders, said Biden directed his officials to deploy "all available Federal firefighting assets that can rapidly assist in suppressing fires impacting Canadian and American communities."
Washington has announced that over 600 firefighters and support personnel have been deployed by the Biden administration thus far, along with additional equipment, to tackle the fires.
Biden and Trudeau also held discussions on ensuring ongoing coordination to prevent wildfires and address the associated health effects proactively, the White House said.
See Also: Justin Trudeau Declares National Day Against Gun Violence Amid Soaring Assault Cases in Canada
Why It Matters: Canada is currently witnessing an "unusually intense" beginning to its wildfire season, as characterized by NASA. Lightning-induced fires in the province of Quebec have contributed to this situation.
As per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Aerosol Watch, the fires in Canada "grew uncontrollably" over the weekend and brought "code red" and "code orange" air quality to Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
The smoke has crossed the border into the U.S., impacting over a dozen states. The United States Environmental Protection Agency told The Hill that as of Wednesday, nearly 100 million people were being impacted by air quality alerts.
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