![]() The other region that’s highlighted from this May 1 forecast - Manitoba, eastern Saskatchewan and maybe Western Ontario,” Carr said.Īn El Nino, typically associated with higher temperatures, is expected to develop over the summer. “The latest forecast is first of all favouring southern British Columbia or southwestern British Columbia to maybe stay a little bit above normal through the summer. Spring is the busiest fire season for Alberta - the province sees more area burned during spring than any other province or territory, said Richard Carr, with the Canadian Forest Service.Īs of now, the forecast predicts “fairly above normal fire severity” for much of the west due to windy, dry conditions and warm temperatures. ![]() She says the past two days have been chaotic. Jolibois, who has stayed behind in La Loche, says if the fire does not pick up today she believes the community could be in good shape. La Loche Mayor Georgina Jolibois said no homes have burned, but some sheds that store hunting equipment have. The fire burning in the region spans 226 hectares and crews are trying to prevent it from destroying homes. Staff with the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency brought food, bottled water, diapers and comforters to dozens of evacuees arriving at a downtown hotel. Meanwhile, hundreds of people from La Loche and the Clearwater River Dene Nation in northern Saskatchewan have also been forced to leave due to the threat of a nearby wildfire.īuses carrying people from La Loche left early Friday for the provincial capital, where they are to receive shelter and support at a hotel and at the University of Regina. Many areas and municipalities across Alberta have fire bans in place for public and private property. Tucker said the situation was “rapidly changing” and told people to keep checking the Alberta Wildfire website along with the provincial dashboard for the most recent information. Officials told people to pack enough supplies to be ready to be away from their homes for at least three days. Five were listed as being under control and one was designated as “being held” which means it wasn’t expected to grow. There were 26 firefighters, three helicopters and air tankers battling back the blaze on Friday.įurther north of the capital, in the Slave Lake forest area, there were a staggering ten wildfires listed as out of control by Friday afternoon. One out of control fire in the Drayton Valley area outside Edmonton is about 1,500 hectares in size, officials said. Most of the worst fires are in central and northern Alberta. There had been no deaths reported as of Friday. That tends to cause very active wildfires.” “This is not great for wildfire activity. ![]() “We’re expecting very warm weather and extremely strong winds,” she said. ![]() Lacroix added that the community police station, general store, and potentially the water plant were also damaged in Fox Lake, which is in the northern part of the province.Ĭhristie Tucker, the information unit manager with Alberta Wildfire said that on Friday, weather conditions for northern Alberta looked dangerous. The fire there is 4,400 hectares large and as of Friday had 55 firefighters, five helicopters, six structure protection crews and heavy equipment fighting to contain it. Officials said they couldn’t provide a full picture of the destruction so far, but said one of the most devastated areas was the community in Fox Lake where between 17 and 20 homes have been lost. “Cabinet continues to have decision-making abilities to deal with emergency decisions,” the statement said. NDP Leader Rachel Notley, who serves as opposition leader, is also receiving updates on the wildfire situation, a media notice from the premier’s office said. The province is in the run-up to a general election, but Premier Danielle Smith activated Alberta’s Emergency Management Cabinet Committee, which is chaired by the premier and vice-chaired by Minister of Public Safety Mike Ellis, on Friday.
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