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Are Canadian wildfires under control? Here’s what to know.
Thick smoke and haze that turned the New York City skyline orange and brought some of the worst air quality levels the Northeast has seen in decades is the result of a series of wildfires burning in Canada.
The fires, which began in early June and have affected Ontario and Quebec, have impacted Canadians and Americans alike. Canadian media reported that 14,000 people in Quebec were evacuated earlier in June. In Canada, the fires caused thick smoke that led to air quality warnings. In the Northeast, there was a similar effect: Cities like New York and Philadelphia were blanketed in a thick haze that eventually traveled south to Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
The smoke is expected to gradually blow away from the U.S. East Coast over the weekend, but the fires in Canada are still burning. Here’s what to know about the ongoing wildfires.
Are the Canadian wildfires under control?
According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, there are currently 426 active fires in the country. According to a map updated by the CIFFC daily, these fires are on both coasts of the country.
Of those fires, 232 are labeled as “out of control.” Just 112 are marked as “under control,” while another 82 are “being held.” A fire being held means it is not moving but still not considered under control.
According to Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, there are 34 active fires burning. Half of them were not yet under control as of Thursday evening, the agency said. Eight are being held, one is being observed and eight are under control.
/ AP
According to Societe De Protection Des Forets, an agency in Quebec, there are 141 active fires in the province. The site does not provide statistics on how many fires are out of control, but does have an interactive map that updates every five minutes with updated statuses.
Why are the Canadian wildfires out of control?
As CBS News previously reported, harsh weather conditions in Canada are fueling the fires and making it harder for firefighters to combat the flames.
This isn’t likely to go away. The Canadian government recently issued an updated outlook for the country’s wildfire season, which usually stretches from May through October. The most recent outlook, published this week, said that the wildfire season this year is already “severe” and warned that current predictions “indicate the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity across most of the country throughout the 2023 wildland fire season due to ongoing drought and long-range forecasts for warm temperatures.”
The country is currently at “national preparedness level 5,” meaning Canada has committed all national resources to fight wildfires across the country. International firefighters are also flying in: Chris Stockdale, a wildland fire research officer with the Canadian Forest Officer, told CBS News that when smoke from earlier fires affected some central and western states, that “international liaison officers” from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa would be flying in to help fight the fires.
President Joe Biden also said earlier this week that American firefighters would be heading north.
“We’ve deployed more than 600 U.S. firefighters, support personnel, and equipment to support Canada as they respond to record wildfires – events that are intensifying because of the climate crisis,” he said in a tweet.
Will ongoing wildfires cause the smoke to return?
The air quality in the U.S. East Coast is expected to improve over the weekend. Even as the fires continue to burn, air quality in New York and other northern areas has begun to return to normal levels.
Jen Carfango, a Weather Channel meteorologist, told CBS News earlier this week that the lingering smoke has more to do with a weather pattern.
“We have been in a blocked pattern across North America all week long,” Carfango said in an email. “That kept an area of upper level low pressure stuck over the Northeast. The flow around the low pressure has been guiding wildfire smoke from Quebec into the Northeast, Great Lakes, and even Ohio Valley and down in the mid-Atlantic.”
A tragic accident changed Mark Raymond Jr.’s life eight years ago, but it hasn’t stopped him from helping and inspiring others just like him.
Raymond described it as a normal day during the Fourth of July weekend in 2016.
“What was different was mom was not there to scream, ‘Mark, don’t dive off the boat,'” he said.
Raymond hit his head on the sandy bottom of Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana. After the terrifying moment, he said he couldn’t move.
Raymond’s best friend rescued him. He woke up a few weeks later from a medically induced coma after fracturing the fifth vertebrae in his neck, which left him paralyzed and no longer able to walk or fully use his hands.
Raymond could only imagine what his future now held.
“Am I still going to find love? Am I still going to, you know, have friends,” he wondered.
After the accident, Raymond went from being a social butterfly and an outdoorsmen to a loner, saying he suffered from suicidal thoughts and depression for a time.
Road to recovery
While scrolling through Instagram one day, Raymond found a rehabilitation facility in California.
“Seeing a room of empty wheelchairs and people doing things that doctors told me I couldn’t do, that effort to challenge the norm, to go the extra mile was really, I think what hooked me,” he said.
Raymond spent three months at the facility. After just the first month, he said he knew he needed to bring a similar program to the New Orleans area.
Inspiring and changing lives
Today, the 35-year-old’s workouts focus on making adjustments for seated equipment.
CBS News
Two years after his accident, Raymond started the Split Second Foundation. In 2021, he opened his gym in New Orleans. It was a decision he made not only for himself, but for others with different needs.
His hero, the friend who pulled him out of the water, suggested the name of the gym, because Raymond’s life changed in a split second.
Raymond said he has a range of clients.
“We’ve got strokes. We’ve got spinal cord injuries. We’ve got cerebral palsy.”
Next year, the gym will move into a building with five times more space. Raymond said he wants to push his clients to get better in a supportive environment.
“We want them to gain, but most importantly, we want them to feel like they belong, like they have a purpose, like they have a home.”
As for goals of his own, he would like to get back on a boat again soon.
“This is Louisiana. Louisiana’s ‘Sportsman’s Paradise,'” he said. “I want a boat I could roll this chair on and still roll around the boat a little bit and have a good time.”
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How to watch the UNLV vs. Kansas NCAA college football game tonight: Livestream options, more
James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
While most of the NCAA college football action happens on Saturday this week, the UNLV Rebels vs. Kansas Jayhawks game will be played tonight. UNLV scored a huge win over Utah Tech in Week 2, while the Jayhawks couldn’t muster a victory over the Illinois Fighting Illini.
Keep reading to find out how and when to watch the UNLV vs. Kansas game tonight, even if you don’t have cable.
How and when to watch the UNLV vs. Kansas game
The UNLV vs. Kansas game will be played on Friday, September 13, 2024 at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT). The college football game will air on ESPN, and stream on Fubo and the platforms featured below.
How and when to watch the UNLV vs. Kansas game without cable
While many cable packages include ESPN it’s easy to watch the game if ESPN isn’t included in your cable TV subscription, or if you don’t have cable at all. Your best options for watching are below. (Streaming options will require an internet provider.)
Watch the UNLV vs. Kansas game free with FuboTV
Live TV streaming service Fubo offers the same top-tier programming you can get from your local cable provider at a fraction of the price. The streamer is a sports fan’s dream considering the sheer volume of live sporting events you can watch on it, including all the best NFL games this week.
Fubo is currently offering a seven-day free trial, so you can try it out risk-free.
Fubo packages include access to college football games airing on your local CBS affiliate, SEC Network, Big Ten Network and ESPNU. There are plenty of channels for NFL fans, including “NFL on Fox,” “Sunday Night Football” on NBC, “Monday Night Football” on ABC and ESPN, and all games aired on NFL Network.
If you want to give Fubo a try, now’s a great time to do so: Fubo is currently offering $30 off your first month of any subscription tier. That means you can watch every NFL and college football game airing on network TV this week starting at just $49.99 after a seven-day free trial. Once you subscribe, you can begin watching immediately on your TV, phone, tablet or computer.
Top features of Fubo:
- There are no contracts with Fubo. You can cancel at any time.
- The Pro ($49.99 first month, $79.99 thereafter) tier includes over 200 channels, including channels not available on some other live TV streaming services.
- Upgrade to 4K resolution with the Elite with Sports Plus tier ($69.99 first month, $99.99 thereafter). It features 299 channels, including NFL RedZone.
- Fubo also offers live MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS and international soccer games.
- All tiers now come with unlimited cloud-based DVR recording.
- You can watch on up to 10 screens at once with any Fubo plan.
- Stream on your TV, phone, tablet and other devices.
Sling TV: The most cost-effective way to stream college football
If you don’t have cable TV that includes ESPN, one of the most cost-effective ways to stream college football this season is through a subscription to Sling TV. We suggest leveling up your coverage to the Orange + Blue with Sports Extra tier to get more NFL and college football games this fall.
The Orange + Blue plan regularly costs $60 per month, but the streamer currently offers a $25 off promotion for your first month, so you’ll pay just $35. The Orange + Blue with Sports Extra plan is $50 for your first month and $75 per month after. The Sports Extra add-on features 18 channels, including NFL Redzone, ESPNU, SEC Network, Big 10 Network and ACC Network, making it ideal for pro and college football fans.
The streamer is also currently offering big savings on four months of the Orange + Blue tier plus the Sports Extra plan when you prepay for the Sling TV Season Pass. The plan costs $219, reduced from $300.
Note: Because Sling TV does not carry CBS, Sling subscribers will want to add Paramount+ to their bundle. (CBS, Paramount+ and CBS Essentials are all subsidiaries of Paramount Global.)
Top features of Sling TV Orange + Blue plan:
- Sling TV is our top choice for streaming major sporting events like NASCAR.
- There are 52 channels to watch in total, including local ESPN, NBC, Fox and ABC affiliates (where available).
- You get access to most local NFL games and nationally broadcast games at the lowest price.
- All subscription tiers include 50 hours of cloud-based DVR storage.
- You can add Golf Channel, NBA TV, NHL Network, NFL RedZone, MLB Network, Tennis Channel and more sports-oriented channels (18 in total) via Sling TV’s Sports Extras add-on.
Watch the UNLV vs. Kansas game on Hulu + Live TV
You can watch college football, including ESPN, with Hulu + Live TV. The bundle features access to 90 channels, including both Fox and FS1. Unlimited DVR storage is also included. Watch every game on every network with Hulu + Live TV, plus catch live NFL preseason games, exclusive live regular season games, popular studio shows (including NFL Total Access and the Emmy-nominated show Good Morning Football) and lots more.
Hulu + Live TV comes bundled with ESPN+ and Disney+ for $77 per month after a three-day free trial.
If you’re anxiously waiting for today’s game to begin, now is a great time to check out Amazon’s college football fan shop. The Amazon College Fan Shop is filled to the brim with officially licensed fan gear: You’ll find jerseys, team flags, T-shirts, hoodies and more, including tons of great gear for the football fan in your life. There are plenty of great deals awaiting you at Amazon, too, including some must-see deals on TVs for watching sports.
Tap the button below to head directly to the College Fan Shop page on Amazon and select your favorite team.
What are the odds for today’s UNLV vs. Kansas NCAA college football game?
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According to our sister site, CBS Sports, the Kansas Jayhawks are favored to win today’s game by 9 points over the UNLV Rebels. The over/under is 57.5.
What is the UNLV Rebels current team ranking?
The Rebels are currently ranked No. 40 out of 134 teams, according to our sister site CBS Sports.
What is the Kansas Jayhawks team ranking?
The Jayhawks are currently ranked No. 31 out of 134 teams, according to CBS Sports.
When is the 2024 NCAA college football championship game?
The College Football Playoff National Championship will be held on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA.
Man paralyzed in tragic accident changes lives through his gym: “They have a purpose”
Fearless Fund settles lawsuit, ends grant program for women of color
How to watch the UNLV vs. Kansas NCAA college football game tonight: Livestream options, more
Man paralyzed in tragic accident changes lives through his gym: “They have a purpose”
Fearless Fund settles lawsuit, ends grant program for women of color
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