YELLOWKNIFE — More than 19,000 people left Yellowknife in less than 48 hours as one of the largest firefighting mobilizations in the history of the Northwest Territories continued to protect the city from an encroaching wildfire.
"It’s draining and, unfortunately, it’s not letting up yet."
Shane Thompson, the territory's minister of environment and climate change, said the wildfire situation remained critical and those who stay endanger themselves and others. The highways and airport could be compromised, he added.The evacuation was announced Wednesday with a deadline to have people out by Friday at noon.
“For the first time in awhile, we got a little bit of help from weather," said fire information officer Mike Westwick. Several other communities in the territory, including the town of Hay River, ordered thousands of residents out within the past week. Evacuees continued to check into evacuation centres across Alberta on Friday.
Cumlepen, who moved from South Africa in the late 1990s, builds winter roads in the N.W.T. to help get supplies to remote communities. He was working in Alberta when the evacuation of his town was ordered Sunday.
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