A Fort Smith, N.W.T., man is recounting his terrifying effort to flee a wildfire with his wife a couple of weeks ago — and crediting a Hay River man for steering them out of danger.
Franco Nogarin drove into an ominous orange sky while fleeing fires near Hay River, N.W.T., on Aug. 13. There was no warning that the drive out would lead them straight into the flames, until an elderly man stopped them on the highway.
Nogarin and Selzler left Hay River at 6:30 p.m. that night with Dario driving behind them. They didn't know it, but Fire SS-052 had started consuming Highway 2 between Hay River and Enterprise —right where they were headed. A photo from Hay River on Aug. 13 shows smoke in the sky as Fort Smith evacuees prepared to evacuate for the second time in 2 days.
As Nogarin and Selzler looked on in horror, a dark pickup truck barrelled past them in the other lane and disappeared toward the inferno. The group didn't even have time to warn them. "He insisted he needed to warn people … Heidi sort of screamed at him, that he needed to get back in his truck and go, or he would die," Nogarin said.
Debris began pelting down on their vehicle like a hail storm, wind blasting the camper nearly to the tipping point. He floored the gas pedal and cranked the wheel toward the road until he could feel the tires gain traction. Ahead of them, Shields didn't hesitate, though. He pulled over and started trying to get people to turn around using the nearby rest stop.Speaking to CBC's Marc Winkler, Shields said he realized it was no longer safe to drive the highway when winds hit 50 kilometres an hour.
'It's just one of those things ... I'm not gonna stand there and watch someone get hurt,' said Shields of his efforts to warn other drivers.
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