Western Canada Declares Fire Emergency as Evacuations Climb
Voice of America
MONTREAL - Canada's western province of British Columbia declared a state of emergency Tuesday, with wildfires expected to grow even larger in the coming days due to high heat and winds.
"We have reached a critical point," said provincial public safety minister Mike Farnworth. "Based on the advice of emergency management and wildfire officials, and my briefing last night on the worsening weather, I am declaring a provincial state of emergency." The decision empowers officials to organize mass-scale evacuations and to provide emergency accommodation for evacuees, he added. Some 5,700 people were under evacuation orders in the province Tuesday -- more than double the previous day's tally, as the threatened region grew in size.
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