Out-of-control wildfires in Yellowknife, Canada, force 20,000 residents to flee
Some 20,000 people have been ordered to evacuate their homes in Yellowknife, the capital of Canada's Northwest Territories, and the surrounding areas as the Behchoko/Yellowknife wildfire burns out of control less than 10 miles outside the city. More than 230 active fires are threatening other cities and towns in the region.
The order to evacuate was issued by the minister of municipal and community affairs on Wednesday, forcing Yellowknife and Ingraham Trail residents to flee their homes and businesses by car and plane. Residents of the First Nations communities of N'Dilo and Dettah were also ordered to evacuate. Authorities told residents they have until noon on Friday to evacuate, and that without rain, the inferno could reach the area by the weekend.
The government's staus update reads, "These fires remain out-of-control," and as of Tuesday, the fires around Yellowknife could be seen from space.
Airtankers flew missions throughout Wednesday night to combat the blaze, according to the government's department of environment and climate change. Firefighting crews have been doing their best to put out hot spots, while others tried to protect cabins and other structures around Highway 3, the main road west out of Yellowknife. In the city itself, officials are taking protective measures including turning on sprinklers and creating fuel breaks.
Images of the blaze are heartbreaking. Photos and videos appearing across social media platforms show bumper-to-bumper traffic as residents try to flee the area. Others show vehicles traveling along the highway engulfed in smoke, with smoldering trees lining the roads as they drive toward safety.
"Hoping for the best but prepared for the worst," Kimberly Benito posted to her Instagram story Wednesday. In another post, she wrote that it took her an hour and a half to get out of Yellowknife.
The evacuation order says those who cannot leave by car can register for evacuation flights, as well as those who are immunocompromised or have high-risk health conditions. Those flights will start taking off at 1 p.m. today, the order reads, and passengers can only take one carry-on item.
Officials are discouraging evacuation attempts by boat to nearby islands, saying the air quality will decline as the fires grow closer.
Municipal Affairs Minister Shane Thompson declared a state of emergency Tuesday to allow the territory to acquire and deploy desperately needed resources to fight the fires.
"We find ourselves in a crisis situation and our government is using every tool available to assist," Thompson said in a press release Tuesday.