Wildfires have forced the majority of the Northwest Territories’ 45,600 residents to leave their communities, with Alberta absorbing most of the evacuees
Thousands of people from the Northwest Territories are dispersing into Western Canada by land and air as one of the country’s largest evacuation efforts empties Yellowknife and other northern communities into towns and cities hundreds of kilometres away.
Officials urged people in Yellowknife to leave via the highway, assuming the road remains passable and their vehicles serviceable. Thousands are heeding this advice, but there are still people in Yellowknife in need of evacuation flights. WestJet and Air Canada added commercial flights and swapped in larger planes. The Yellowknife Women’s Society chartered its own evacuation plane, according to Cabin Radio, a local news organization.
Ms. Alty said there is a shortage of fire-retardant gel, which is used to protect structures when fires encroach on communities, but she expects Yellowknife’s inventory to be replenished soon. She also said officials believe there is enough gel on hand to protect “core assets” like the hospital, evacuation reception centre, and government facilities such as the water-treatment plant.
Calgary established two evacuation reception centres – one at the airport for those arriving by plane and another at the Westin Calgary Airport hotel for those arriving in vehicles. The city is prepared to immediately welcome 5,000 evacuees, according to Iain Bushell, Calgary’s director of emergency management and community safety.
Canadian Armed Forces soldiers arriving in Yellowknife via a CC-150 Polaris aircraft to support Operation LENTUS in Northwest Territories on Aug. 14.Meanwhile, British Columbia said it expected 55 hospital patients and long-term care-home residents from NWT to be airlifted to the Vancouver region. Further, B.C. Emergency Management and Climate Readiness Minister Bowinn Ma said there are roughly 1,100 spaces available in the north of her province should evacuees from NWT need them.
“We’ve got four big buses on the way to take people down to the airport to register to leave by air and we’re shuttling people out of both communities right now,” said Kieron Testart, the economic development director with the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, referring to Dettah and a second nearby community, Ndilo.
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