Image: SYLVIA WEBSTER (UGC)
In addition to fierce fires in the Northwest Territories, a fire in the south-west of the country is also threatening several towns. These are near Okanagan Lake, which is popular with tourists. The fire, which the authorities said on Friday morning (local time) covered an area of around 1,100 hectares, was only ten kilometers from the city of West Kelowna in the British Columbia region.
A state of emergency was declared there on Thursday. Evacuation orders were in place for around 2,500 people in West Kelowna, according to broadcaster CBC. That number is expected to rise, local fire chief Jason Brolund told the broadcaster. 36,000 people live in the city. Footage showed the city with some high rise buildings and a marina in the foreground and the approaching flames on hills behind. In addition, wind drove the fires further and further.
The city of Kelowna on the opposite side of the lake also declared a state of emergency early Friday morning. Individual fires had spread to the city, according to a statement from the authorities. Residents in several neighborhoods were therefore asked to leave their homes. According to the broadcaster CBC, Kelowna is home to almost 150,000 people. It is about 100 kilometers as the crow flies from the US border in a much more densely populated region than many of the fires in the north.
In the capital of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, the evacuation of around 20,000 residents continues. There, too, the forest fires are raging only a few kilometers from the city limits. Barring rain, the blazes could reach the outskirts over the weekend, regional environment secretary Shane Thompson warned at a news conference.
More than 3,000 people flown out of Yellowknife
Around 1,500 people had been flown out of Yellowknife by Thursday evening, the authorities said at a press conference on Thursday evening. On Friday, around 1,800 more people were to be brought to safety with 22 flights. It was not initially known how many people had already left the city by land. Pictures showed long queues to register for the flights. Thousands of others left the city in cars heading south.
Canada has been battling wildfires in several parts of the country for months. Wildfires are an annual phenomenon in many parts of Canada, which often require people to be evacuated. However, this year is the worst known wildfire season in the country’s history. With climate change, experts warn that fires will become more frequent and more destructive. In the prairie provinces of western Canada, the average temperature has risen by 1.9 degrees Celsius since the mid-20th century, according to the Department of Environment and Climate Change.
Source: Nachrichten
