Most of the Fires Are Still Out of Control
CURRENTLY THERE ARE MORE THAN 100 WILDFIRES burning in northern Alberta Province. The firefighting resources are not sufficient to get control over them yet as hundred of firefighters are being flown in from across the country. The Calgary Fire Department which is located about 200 miles away has dispatched 12 engines and over 100 firefighters to Slave Lake to control the fires there.
Update: Firegeezer friend Jay911 has sent along the following information regarding the mutual aid responses:
Calgary FD sent 1 quint, 1 aerial, 5 engines, 1 air-light, a district chief, and support staff (shop mechanic & supply truck), along with 100 FFs. Edmonton sent 70 with an unknown amount of equipment. Calgary also mobilized CAN-TF2, one of five HUSAR teams in Canada very similar to the FEMA USAR teams in the USA. CAN-TF2 sent one 53' cache semi, one 60' mobile hospital semi, and various communications gear and staff to operate/assist with all said equipment.
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In the past two days, three wind-whipped blazes have attacked the town of Slave Lake (pop. 7,000) sending the residents to refugee stations 60 miles away. Currently more than 40% of the town's structures have been destroyed, including the high school, the major shopping mall, and the town hall.
The Slave Lake town hall and government center was
completely destroyed. (CBC images)
The town was totally evacuated on Sunday on a moment's notice when winds shifted and sent one of the fires directly into the populated area.
The evacuation Sunday was sudden, but orderly. (CBC)
This morning's report from CTV adds:
According to the latest Alberta government bulletin issued late Monday night, there are more than 100 wildfires burning across the province, 36 of which are out of control. Fifteen of those are in the Slave Lake area.
The largest include a wildfire east of the town that's already burned 20 square kilometres and another to the south that's scorched a 150-square kilometre area.
Besides the mass evacuation from Slave Lake, which Alberta cabinet minister Thomas Lukaszuk said is the largest single-day displacement of Albertans in the province's history, evacuation orders are also in effect for Loon Lake in the Red Earth Creek area and Chisholm southeast of Slave Lake.
Multiple forest fires north of Fort McMurray have also seen the evacuation of about 2,000 oil workers.
Reuters
CTV News has provided this excellent video report:
For more in-depth coverage of the Slave Lake fire, check periodically with Wildfire Today website HERE.
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