Wildfire near Fort McMurray grows to 5,500 hectares, but flames pushed south of city

A wildfire is burning 16 kilometres southwest of Fort McMurray on May 11, 2024.

A wildfire near Fort McMurray, Alta., more than tripled in size overnight — but fire officials are hopeful it won't spread as much Sunday, nor approach the northwestern Alberta city.A wildfire burning in northern Alberta, about 16 kilometres southwest of Fort McMurray, has more than tripled in size since Saturday, according to Alberta Wildfire estimates. But officials are hopeful Sunday's weather will slow its growth. A wildfire near Fort McMurray, Alta.

Fire officials witnessed extreme wind speeds and fire behaviour Saturday, but the flames were pushed to the southeast, said Melissa Story, an Alberta Wildfire public information officer. Alberta Wildfire does not expect the fire to grow much on Sunday, as winds are forecast to slow down and shift to northwesterly, pushing the flames back onto the current burned area, Story said.

We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

CBCNews /  🏆 2. in CA

Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

11 new wildfire starts across Alberta, evacuation alerts expanded near Fort McMurrayThe Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo (RMWB) expanded its evacuation alert as of 3 p.m. Saturday.
Read more »

Wildfire evacuation notice issued for Alberta town Fort McMurrayExplore stories from Atlantic Canada.
Read more »

Fort McMurray under evacuation alert due to out-of-control wildfire nearbyFORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — An evacuation alert was issued in Alberta for Fort McMurray on Friday evening as an out-of-control wildfire burned nearby.
Read more »

Fort McMurray under evacuation alert due to out-of-control wildfire nearbyFORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — An evacuation alert was issued in Alberta for Fort McMurray on Friday evening as an out-of-control wildfire burned nearby.
Read more »

Fort McMurray under evacuation alert due to out-of-control wildfire nearbyFORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — An evacuation alert was issued in Alberta for Fort McMurray on Friday evening as an out-of-control wildfire burned nearby.
Read more »

Fort McMurray under evacuation alert due to out-of-control wildfire nearbyFORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — An evacuation alert was issued in Alberta for Fort McMurray on Friday evening as an out-of-control wildfire burned nearby.
Read more »