Wildfire Season Is Starting Earlier—Here’s How to Stay Ready
- Why Wildfire Season Is Shifting Earlier in 2026
- Risks Wildfires Pose to Homes and Power Infrastructure
- Why Backup Power Is Critical During Wildfires
- What to Prepare Before Fire Season Starts
- Emergency Power Solutions for Wildfire Preparedness
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Early Preparation Helps Reduce Wildfire Risks and Disruptions
With wildfires becoming increasingly intense and widespread throughout the world, you might want to find out how to prepare yourself for an emergency.
On top of the dangers that wildfires pose to your property, health, and life, they can also damage power infrastructure and cause outages in regions far from the fire’s reach.
In this guide, we explain why the wildfire season is starting earlier, the factors making these natural disasters more dangerous, and what you need to do to prepare yourself.
Why Wildfire Season Is Shifting Earlier in 2026
Despite improved ways to prevent wildfires, they’ve been worsening every year since the 1970s.
Wildfires have been exacerbating north of the border as well, making wildfire preparedness in Canada crucial.
On top of wildfire season shifting earlier, more and more regions are becoming vulnerable as dry conditions enable wildfires to break out increasingly close to the poles.
Research suggests that the main culprit behind the shifting and worsening wildfire seasons is climate change, with human activity accounting for two-thirds of the increase in wildfire weather.
As rising average seasonal temperatures result in drier wildland vegetation, the risk of wildfire is rising.
Risks Wildfires Pose to Homes and Power Infrastructure
Wildfires can spread rapidly and destroy anything in their path, including homes and power lines. When fires damage power lines and grid infrastructure, outages can occur in areas that expand far beyond the localities of the wildfire.
In Canada’s more remote or rural areas, where infrastructure is less dense and access routes are limited, outages can last significantly longer. This makes reliable backup power especially important for maintaining safety and communication during emergencies.
Whole-home backup systems like the EcoFlow DELTA Pro Ultra are designed to provide extended power during these situations, helping households stay operational even during prolonged outages.
Why Backup Power Is Critical During Wildfires
With the risk of wildfires on the rise, there’s never been a better time to invest in a backup power source, which could be a lifesaver in the event of an emergency.
Here’s why backup power is so critical during wildfires:
Maintain access to communications: If your area suffers a power outage, you need a power backup to stay on top of updates from the local authorities. You can also maintain open channels of communication with emergency services and loved ones.
Keep the lights on: In remote areas, power outages caused by wildfires can significantly reduce your visibility and ability to navigate safely. A generator or power station can power your entire home during an outage.
Ensure business continuity: If you operate a business in a high-risk area, having a source of backup power minimizes the risk of an outage resulting in costly business downtime.
Ensure vital equipment keeps running: Whether it’s the lights, digital assets, or lifesaving medical equipment, backup generators make sure you don’t lose the power you need when the grid comes under strain.
What to Prepare Before Fire Season Starts
You can avert or minimize many of the risks of wildfires by getting prepared ahead of the season. Here’s what you need to do:
Stock up on suitable groceries: Remain stocked up with enough groceries to survive a few days without needing to leave the home in smoky conditions. We recommend choosing some groceries that don’t require refrigeration or cooking so you can reduce the air pollution in your home when necessary.
Top up your medical supplies: Keep enough medication on hand to last, ideally, several weeks. If you or a family member suffers from heart or lung conditions such as asthma, ask your doctor for advice on how to manage the condition in the event of a wildfire.
Keep a supply of N95 respirators: N95 respirators can prevent you from breathing in smoke and airborne particles that can be life-threatening during a wildfire.
Buy a portable air cleaner: You should use portable air cleaners with high-efficiency HEPA filters to help keep your home pollutant-free.
Watch out for alerts: Make sure you know where to find and stay up to date with public and health warnings in your area. Local authorities usually provide air quality reports and public service announcements via channels including social media and radio.
Make an evacuation plan: Your evacuation plan needs to include not only your evacuation route but also details such as which personal possessions to prioritize and how to deal with pets if urgency is required.
Invest in a source of backup power: Last but not least, you should invest in a quality generator or power station before it’s too late. Maintaining access to power significantly reduces many of the risks you may face during a wildfire.
The earlier you prepare, the better. Sometimes, wildfires can break out with little warning, such as ‘holdover’ fires in Alberta and British Columbia that can reemerge suddenly.
Emergency Power Solutions for Wildfire Preparedness
Generators with solar integration or rechargeable batteries are a solid choice for emergency backup power.
For starters, they don’t use combustible fuel, which can make some generators dangerous during wildfires. They also provide power with minimal emissions, crucial in wildfire conditions.
Moreover, they’re effective during extended blackouts, with many models featuring batteries that can power your entire home for several days or even weeks at a time.
The EcoFlow DELTA Pro Ultra is a reliable modular home backup power system for small to medium-sized properties. When paired with an EcoFlow Smart Home Panel 2, these systems enable automatic switchover during outages and more efficient energy management.
If you live remotely and need something more robust, the EcoFlow DELTA Pro Ultra X comes with an increased capacity of 12–180kWh.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Are Wildfires Starting Earlier?
Wildfires are starting earlier in many regions throughout the world because of climate change, with higher temperatures and drier wildland vegetation being the primary factors. Research suggests that human activity accounts for two-thirds of this climate change.
How Do Wildfires Cause Power Outages?
Wildfires can damage power lines, substations, and transmission infrastructure. This can lead to outages that affect regions far beyond the immediate fire area.
How Can You Prepare Your Home for Fire Season?
In preparation for wildfire season, make sure your home is always stocked up with a week or more’s supply of groceries, medicines, and essential equipment. Crucially, make sure you have a generator or backup power station that can keep your home operating and communications open in the event of an emergency.
Early Preparation Helps Reduce Wildfire Risks and Disruptions
If you live in an area that’s becoming increasingly prone to and affected by wildfires, now’s the time to get yourself fully prepared for the worst-case scenario.
With a reliable source of backup power, you can keep your communications open and vital equipment running if your area suffers a power outage. You can also minimize the disruption of a power outage to your daily life.
Discover our range of reliable and cost-effective home backup power solutions today.