Cooler weather across Alberta on Monday helped firefighters battling widespread wildfires in Canada's main oil-producing province, but the government said it could be months before all the blazes are brought under control.

Alberta declared a state of emergency on Saturday in response to wildfires that have displaced nearly 30,000 people and prompted energy producers to shut in at least 185,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), about 2% of Canada's output.

By Monday afternoon 98 wildfires were still active, with nearly 30 classified as out-of-control.

More than 700 firefighters had been deployed and Alberta had requested a further 1,000 from other provinces, who were expected to arrive over the next week, officials said.

The provincial government also invited volunteers with firefighting skills to register with the province to help tackle the blazes. The government wanted to utilise the many people across the province with firefighting expertise, particularly in Indigenous communities, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said.

"Some of these fires might continue on for several months so if we can use resources that are already here, the people who are able to help, we want to be open to doing that," Smith said at a press conference.

Alberta requests federal help

Alberta has formally requested help from the federal government, including military assistance, and Smith spoke with Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau earlier in the day.

(Reuters)

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