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Alberta wildfire growing, may reach Saskatchewan
| CNN | - |
(CNN)
The massive wildfire that forced almost 90,000 people to evacuate in
Alberta is growing and approaching the neighboring province of
Saskatchewan, Canadian officials said.
Alberta wildfire growing, may reach Saskatchewan
(CNN)The
massive wildfire that forced almost 90,000 people to evacuate in
Alberta is growing and approaching the neighboring province of
Saskatchewan, Canadian officials said.
Dry
and extremely windy conditions are fueling the blaze, which has
scorched more than 1,560 square kilometers (602 square miles) and
ravaged the city of Fort McMurray, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale
said Saturday.
"The situation remains unpredictable and dangerous," he told reporters.
Alberta
is "tinder dry," he said, adding there was a possibility of a drop in
temperature and a slight chance of rain early next week.
A
downpour is needed to tame the fire that is the size of Hong Kong and
almost 25% bigger than New York City. It has displaced about 88,000
people, wiped out at least 1,600 structures and sent plumes of smoke as
far away as Iowa. The fire may double in size, Goodale said.
The
blaze is moving in a northeast direction and could reach the border
with Saskatchewan by the end of Saturday, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley
said.
The response has been
massive. Notley said more than 500 firefighters are battling the blaze
around Fort McMurray, with the help of 15 helicopters and 14 air
tankers. More than 1,400 firefighters and 133 helicopters are fighting
blazes across the province.
Notley
said the Suncor and Syncrude oil companies to the north of Fort McMurray
are evacuating personnel. Officials stressed that the company
properties don't appear to be in danger from the fire.
The premier said the human suffering is heartbreaking.
"I
met families who had picked up and evacuated on a few hours' notice,
who are understandably worried and anxious about what is going to happen
next, about their children's schooling, about their belongings," she
said.
One bit of good news: No fatalities directly related to the fire have been reported.
27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A truck drives toward a wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Evacuees
leave Fort McMurray in the early morning, after being stranded north of
the wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Drivers wait for clearance to take firefighting supplies into town on Thursday, May 5, outside Fort McMurray, Alberta.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A
member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police surveys wildfire damage in
Fort McMurray. The RCMP tweeted the photo on Thursday, May 5.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Tyra Abo sits on a cot at a makeshift evacuation center in Lac la Biche, Alberta, on May 5.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A woman picks through donated clothing and goods at a makeshift evacuation center in Lac la Biche on May 5.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The
wildfire moves toward the town of Anzac on Wednesday, May 4. The
wildfire began Sunday, May 1, and had torched 24,710 acres by Wednesday,
CNN partner CBC News said. The cause of the blaze was unclear.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
People camp out at a beach south of Fort McMurray on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Evacuees watch the wildfire near Fort McMurray on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Traffic is at a standstill on Highway 63 south as residents flee the wildfire on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Robert Parker, left, and Matt Jones siphon gas from two snowmobiles for their truck on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A helicopter flies past the wildfire in Fort McMurray on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The wildfire rages through Fort McMurray on Tuesday, May 3.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The wildfire burns through northern Alberta in this image released by NASA on May 3.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A ball of flame rises behind abandoned vehicles on Highway 63 near Fort McMurray, Alberta, on Saturday, May 7. The fire has forced more than 88,000 people from their homes.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A helicopter helping with the Fort McMurray wildfire takes off from a staging base near Conklin, Alberta, on May 7.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Skeletons
of patio furniture and smoldering home foundations are all that remain
in parts of a residential neighborhood on May 7.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Charred vehicles sit in a heavily damaged residential neighborhood on May 7.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Smoke and flames create a dramatic sunset near Fort McMurray on Friday, May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
RCMP officers man a checkpoint on the highway to Fort McMurray as wildfires burn out of control on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A huge plume of smoke from the wildfires rises over Fort McMurray in this aerial photograph taken in Alberta, Canada, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A water bomber drops water over Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6, 2016.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Flames and smoke tint the sky south of Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A plane drops fire retardant on a nearby wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A police helicopter lifts off through dust and smoke on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The remains of a swing sits in a residential neighborhood destroyed by the fire on May 6, in Fort McMurray, Alberta.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Home
foundations and shells of vehicles are nearly all that remain in a
residential neighborhood in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A truck drives toward a wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Evacuees
leave Fort McMurray in the early morning, after being stranded north of
the wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Drivers wait for clearance to take firefighting supplies into town on Thursday, May 5, outside Fort McMurray, Alberta.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A
member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police surveys wildfire damage in
Fort McMurray. The RCMP tweeted the photo on Thursday, May 5.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Tyra Abo sits on a cot at a makeshift evacuation center in Lac la Biche, Alberta, on May 5.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A woman picks through donated clothing and goods at a makeshift evacuation center in Lac la Biche on May 5.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The
wildfire moves toward the town of Anzac on Wednesday, May 4. The
wildfire began Sunday, May 1, and had torched 24,710 acres by Wednesday,
CNN partner CBC News said. The cause of the blaze was unclear.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
People camp out at a beach south of Fort McMurray on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Evacuees watch the wildfire near Fort McMurray on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Traffic is at a standstill on Highway 63 south as residents flee the wildfire on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Robert Parker, left, and Matt Jones siphon gas from two snowmobiles for their truck on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A helicopter flies past the wildfire in Fort McMurray on May 4.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The wildfire rages through Fort McMurray on Tuesday, May 3.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The wildfire burns through northern Alberta in this image released by NASA on May 3.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A ball of flame rises behind abandoned vehicles on Highway 63 near Fort McMurray, Alberta, on Saturday, May 7. The fire has forced more than 88,000 people from their homes.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A helicopter helping with the Fort McMurray wildfire takes off from a staging base near Conklin, Alberta, on May 7.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Skeletons
of patio furniture and smoldering home foundations are all that remain
in parts of a residential neighborhood on May 7.
Hide Caption
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Charred vehicles sit in a heavily damaged residential neighborhood on May 7.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Smoke and flames create a dramatic sunset near Fort McMurray on Friday, May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
RCMP officers man a checkpoint on the highway to Fort McMurray as wildfires burn out of control on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A huge plume of smoke from the wildfires rises over Fort McMurray in this aerial photograph taken in Alberta, Canada, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A water bomber drops water over Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6, 2016.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Flames and smoke tint the sky south of Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A plane drops fire retardant on a nearby wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A police helicopter lifts off through dust and smoke on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
The remains of a swing sits in a residential neighborhood destroyed by the fire on May 6, in Fort McMurray, Alberta.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
Home
foundations and shells of vehicles are nearly all that remain in a
residential neighborhood in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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27 photos: Wildfire forces Canadian city to evacuate
A truck drives toward a wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alberta, on May 6.
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Fort
McMurray has been devastated. Besides the fire damage to structures,
the power grid has been damaged, and the water is currently undrinkable,
Notley said.
"I want to underline
again that no one who is not a trained first responder with a specific
job to do should be in Fort McMurray," she said.
Many
Fort McMurray residents first evacuated north of the city to oil
company camps. They were forced to move again as supplies ran low and
the oil companies decided to evacuate their own employees.
Thousands
of people who drove through Fort McMurray on Friday and Saturday in
evacuee convoys headed to Edmonton and other cities witnessed the
devastation.
"It
was something like Armageddon," said Morgan Elliott, who traveled with
his fiancee, Cara Kennedy, and their baby, Abigail. "Everything was
burnt, houses gone. Leaving the city, it was like a scene out of a
movie. It reminded me of the TV show 'The Walking Dead' where you're
going on the highway, and there's just abandoned vehicles everywhere;
hundreds of cars, just abandoned vehicles."
Video shows home burn from Fort McMurray fire 01:40
Vehicles
headed south down Highway 63, the lone road open for people relocating
to emergency shelters or the homes of friends or family, the Regional
Municipality of Wood Buffalo reported.
Notley
said 12,000 people have been airlifted over the past two days and 7,000
were able to drive out. Some 15,000 people remain stranded north of the
devastated city, but not all will leave, she said.
Canada wildfire: By the numbers
1,600: Structures destroyed
88,000: People evacuated
1,010: Square kilometers burned
250: Firefighters
12: Firefighting helicopters
0: Reported fatalities
88,000: People evacuated
1,010: Square kilometers burned
250: Firefighters
12: Firefighting helicopters
0: Reported fatalities
Many
evacuees are expected eventually to wind up in Edmonton, the provincial
capital some 379 kilometers (236 miles) to the south, or Calgary, where
residents and officials were working to set up accommodations for the
influx of temporary residents.
The
fire is so large that once brought under control it will burn in some
places for "weeks and weeks," said Chad Morrison of Alberta Wildfire.
Notley said a great deal of rebuilding work will follow the end of the fire.
"This is Canada," she said. "Canadians work together in the face of a disaster like this.
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