Thousands evacuate as wildfire surges in Canada’s Yellowknife
Once again there is a fire in the forests of Canada. According to Reuters, all 20,000 people in the city of Yellowknife have been ordered to leave their homes and go to a safer place. Meanwhile the fire brigade is trying to keep the fire away from the town of Yellowknife. One of the deadliest wildfires in Canada this year.
There are more than 1 thousand active fires in the country, which are spread over about 265 areas. Due to forest fire in Canada this year, an area of about 1.34 lakh square km has been burnt. This is about 6 times more than the area that burns every 10 years. So far this season, about 2 lakh people have had to leave their homes due to wildfires at one time or the other.
Trees are being cut to stop the fire
The city’s mayor, Rebecca, said special teams were cutting down trees near the city to stop the flames from spreading. The fire is currently about 15 km from the northwest area of the city. If there is no rain, it is expected to reach the outskirts by Saturday.
Speaking to CBC News, the mayor said the city of Yellowknife was covered in thick smoke, which made it difficult to see anything. Wildfire Service Director Cliff Chapman said the next 24-48 hours would be the most challenging.
In view of the emergency, PM Justin Trudeau called a meeting of the Incident Response Group on Thursday. Senior officers and ministers participated in this group. On Thursday, 5 flights took off to take people to Alberta.
Territorial Environment Minister Shane Thompson said – the city is not in danger at the moment but there is no assurance of fire. ‘We had asked people to vacate the city from Wednesday itself’. He said that about 65% of the 46,000 people in the area affected by the fire will be evacuated.
