Fires continue to burn close to several communities in the Northwest Territories where evacuation orders remain in effect. Here are the latest updates for the affected communities.
Fires continue to burn close to several communities in the Northwest Territories where evacuation orders remain in effect.The City of Yellowknife and the government of the N.W.T. will give a joint fire update at 7 p.m. MT on MondayApproximately 350 CAF personnel, dozens of helicopters and heavy equipment are focused on the fires around Yellowknife and throughout N.W.T.Mike Westwick, a fire information officer for the N.W.T. told CTVNews.
Until now, firefighters had focused on defensive measures, like clearing trees and underbrush to create fire lines in the forest and rob the wildfire of fuel, as well as water bombing the blaze from the air to cool it off. Swirling winds also reduced fire intensity on Monday. More rain is expected, but will also come with the risk of lighting, which could cause more fires.
Evacuees from Yellowknife, territorial capital of the Northwest Territories, make their way along highway 3, at the edge of a burned forest, on their way into Ft. Providence, N.W.T., Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. The government is monitoring the situation, the prime minister said, particularly in the communities of Kelowna, B.C. and around Yellowknife as fires continue to encroach on the cities.
Fire crews from Ontario, New Brunswick, Alberta, Yukon and pilots from Manitoba are currently on the ground fighting the fires. Firefighters from South Africa have been helping out as well, said Westwick, the fire information officer for the N.W.T. "The unified command team there has been putting in some really good work taking advantage of that weather and continuing to build upon a huge network of fuel breaks," he said.
"The town of Hay River, unfortunately, got some practice on this. This is the second time they've been potentially impacted by wildfire in terms of being very close to their community," Westwick said.Many of the 236 fires burning across the territory are in remote or threatening small communities.
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