Photo: Cantons-de-l'Est · CC BY-SA 4.0Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s hazards at a glance: a low wildfire record and 8.2% of area homes over the radon guideline
Since 1986 almost nothing has burned near Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton: 0% of the land within 25 km, or 0.000% a year. Shaking is a bigger worry than in most places, at $0.098 a year per $1,000 of building value ($0.030 typical). Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton grades C+ for hazard risk; wildfire is low here, so it earns no credit.
What stands out about Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s hazards
For Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton, from NRCan’s seismic model, Health Canada’s radon survey, the national burned-area record and the flood map inventory.
What Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton faces
Each hazard against its own yardstick; meters run from low to high on that yardstick.
Wildfire
Earthquakes
Radon
Flood study
Hazard risk in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton: C+
Two inputs always count for Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton, earthquakes and radon; the third, wildfire, counts only against a town.
How sure: Earthquake losses are a model’s expectation over many years, not a forecast for any one. The burned-area record misses fires under about 10 ha and most grass and farm fires.
Few fires near Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton: 0% within 5 km, 0% within 25 km
Past fire around Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s homes, from the national burned-area record, with the fuel within 5 km.
Forty years of fire maps put Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton at 0.000% a year, low next to the typical Canadian town’s 0.000%.
The closest burn since 1986 lies 8.4 km from Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s homes, none within 5 km.
Land that isn’t forest covers nearly all the ground around Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton: forest fuel is 3.1% within 5 km and 4.3% within 25 km.
Shares of land within 5 and 25 km of populated blocks: burned at least once in 1986–2025 (CWFIS burned-area composite), forest fuel and grass (fire behaviour fuel types, 2026, 250 m grid).
Burn rate a year, towns in Quebec · highest of 514
Of the 514 towns in Quebec, 145 have a burn rate that rounds to zero, Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton among them; Mistissini leads at 0.31% a year.
Each bar: the yearly average share of land within 25 km of a town’s homes that burned, 1986–2025 (CWFIS); the seven highest towns of 2,500 people or more.
Most of the country’s 2,610 towns are low-band (92%, against 7.5% above); around Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton, burning rounds to zero.
Bands of the yearly burn rate: low under 0.05%, moderate under 0.25%, high under 1%, very high 1% or more; towns of 2,500 people or more.
Fire danger and active fires (CWFIS)
Canadian Wildland Fire Information System: National Burned Area Composite 1986–2025 and fire behaviour fuel types (2026), Natural Resources Canada. Measured within 25 km and 5 km of each populated dissemination area; past fire, not a forecast.
No flood study is listed for Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton
What Canada’s Flood Map Inventory lists for Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton: who studied flooding and where to see their maps.
An empty entry for Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton on the inventory isn’t proof of safety; ask locally for flood maps.
Towns with a flood study on file
Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton has no flood study on file; only 45% of towns in Quebec do, against 58% across Canada.
NRCan Canada Flood Map Inventory: a study footprint touching the town’s boundary; towns of 2,500 people or more.
The grade leaves flood out, since a study area says nothing about how many of Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s homes are at risk.
The inventory’s own caution (NRCan): “The Canada Flood Map (CFM) does not include every flood hazard map in Canada and may be incomplete or contain inaccuracies. It should not be relied upon as the official source of flood mapping information. Furthermore, if a map appears to be missing, this does not necessarily mean that the area has never been mapped. For the official version of a map, updated information, or confirmation of applicable regulations, please contact the local authority responsible for flood mapping.”
Shaking is Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s costliest hazard: $0.098 a year per $1,000
Expected yearly building losses from earthquakes, from Natural Resources Canada’s model.
At $0.098 per $1,000, Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton carries roughly 3.3 times the typical Canadian town’s earthquake risk ($0.030).
Shaking damage a year per $1,000 of building value
The typical town in Quebec expects $0.14 a year in shaking damage; Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton expects less, $0.098, and La Pocatière the most, $0.48.
NRCan seismic risk model (2022): mean yearly building loss per $1,000 of value; medians of towns of 2,500 people or more.
In the upper part of Canada’s range: 26% of its 2,611 towns expect more damage than Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton.
Each column: the share of Canada’s towns of 2,500 people or more in that range of yearly loss per $1,000 (NRCan, 2022).
Only shaking damage to buildings in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton is counted; landslides, liquefaction, tsunami and fire after a quake aren’t.
Natural Resources Canada, Canada’s Seismic Risk Model (2022), by census subdivision (2016 boundaries; a few 2021 subdivisions take their residents’ mean).
Radon about average around Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton: 8.2% over the guideline
Long-term radon tests in homes across the survey area, against Health Canada’s guideline. · Source area for radon tests: the Monteregie health region
Around Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton, 8.2% of tested homes topped the guideline, near the typical Canadian town’s 6.6%.
Tested homes over 200 Bq/m³
Over 600 Bq/m³
Radon around Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton is ordinary for towns in Quebec: 8.2%, beside a median of 8.2%.
Health Canada radon survey (2009–2011), by 2007 health region; medians of towns of 2,500 people or more.
Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton is in the 5–10% band with 37% of Canada’s 2,611 towns; 26% have more.
Each bar: the share of Canada’s towns of 2,500 people or more whose survey area had that share of tests over 200 Bq/m³.
Health Canada advises testing every home, Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s included, whatever the area’s figure.
Health Canada, Cross-Canada Survey of Radon Concentrations in Homes (2009–2011).
Where to get warnings in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton
Environment and Climate Change Canada issues the weather alerts for Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton; Alert Ready carries the urgent ones to phones, radio and TV.
| Alert | What it means |
|---|---|
| Warning | Severe weather is happening or about to: act now. |
| Watch | Conditions favour severe weather: be ready. |
| Advisory | Weather that is less severe but could disrupt the day. |
| Special weather statement | Unusual weather worth knowing about. |
| Special air quality statement | Poor air, often wildfire smoke. |
In fire season, check CWFIS for danger and active fires around Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton, and listen to local authorities for orders.
Weather alerts (ECCC) · Alert Ready · Fire danger and active fires (CWFIS)
How Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s neighbours compare on hazards
Wildfire band, earthquake risk, radon and flood studies for each place nearby.
| Town | Wildfire | Quake $/1,000 | Radon | Flood study |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton | Low | $0.098 | 8.2% | None listed |
| Roxton Pond 4,884 · 8.3 km | Low | $0.071 | 8.2% | None listed |
| Granby 72,180 · 9.1 km | Low | $0.090 | 8.2% | None listed |
| Saint-Valérien-de-Milton 1,794 · 9.7 km | Low | $0.098 | 8.2% | Yes |
| Saint-Pie 6,085 · 11 km | Low | $0.11 | 8.2% | Yes |
| Saint-Paul-d'Abbotsford 2,891 · 11 km | Low | $0.096 | 8.2% | Yes |
| Saint-Dominique 3,062 · 12 km | Low | $0.11 | 8.2% | None listed |
Saint-Pie burns a little more than Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton, in the same low band (low here).
Radon is the survey area’s figure, so neighbours in one area share it.
Get ready for what Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton faces
What to do about the hazards Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton faces, and what to ask before you buy.
- Test for three months in winter.
- Over 200 Bq/m³: fix it.
- Kits are cheap; pros test too.
- Never drive through floodwater.
- Move papers and medicines upstairs.
- Ask whether your street is mapped.
- Clear needles and wood nearby.
- Keep a grab-and-go bag ready.
- In smoke, stay in; filter air.
- Has it had a radon test?
- Ask the municipality for flood maps.
- Are flood and wildfire insured?
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Wildfire counts one way. For Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton, wildfire means how much nearby land burned in the past forty years, a one-way input that can pull Risk down and nothing more.
- Radon is a survey. Health Canada’s survey tested some 14,000 homes over three months; until postal-area boundaries are loaded, Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton takes its 2007 health region’s share.
- Flood studies aren’t flood zones. The flood inventory points to maps; it is incomplete and not the official source, so ask the municipality about any street in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton.
- Earthquakes are modelled. Seismic risk is NRCan’s model of yearly building losses from shaking, averaged over many years and given for Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s census subdivision (a neighbourhood shows its city’s).
Questions about flooding and hazards in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton
Is Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton at risk of wildfire?
Less than most of Canada: 0% of the land within 25 km of Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton has burned since 1986, the last in 2025, a low band that leaves Risk alone.
How big is the earthquake risk in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton?
In NRCan’s seismic model, Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s buildings lose $0.098 per $1,000 of value in an average year.
Does Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton flood?
Nothing is listed for Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton on the national inventory (0); local maps may still exist with the municipality.
How is Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s Hazard risk Grade worked out?
Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s Hazard risk grade is C+, built on earthquakes and radon with a one-sided wildfire input.
Is radon a problem in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton?
In Health Canada’s survey, 8.2% of 110 homes tested in Sainte-Cécile-de-Milton’s area were above 200 Bq/m³, though only a test tells you about one house.
Seismic risk: Natural Resources Canada. Radon: Health Canada. Wildfire: Canadian Wildland Fire Information System. Flood studies: Natural Resources Canada, Canada Flood Map Inventory. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada.
Sources: NRCan, Canada’s Seismic Risk Model 2022 · Health Canada, Cross-Canada Survey of Radon Concentrations in Homes · CWFIS, National Burned Area Composite and FBP fuel types · NRCan, Canada Flood Map Inventory. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).