Wildfire forces residents of remote Alberta hamlet to evacuate by boat and plane
CBC
An effort to evacuate an isolated northeastern Alberta community threatened by wildfire is slowly nearing completion as the fight against the flames escalates.
About 1,000 people who live in Fort Chipewyan, 300 kilometres north of Fort McMurray, were told Tuesday to leave their homes but getting everyone out has been hampered by the community's remote location.
In the summer months, after the ice road melts, the hamlet is accessible only by plane or boat.
The evacuation is being done in stages by air and by river. Some people are being flown out to Fort McMurray. Others are travelling by boat, south along the Athabasca River.
In a post to Facebook Wednesday at 2 p.m., the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo urged all remaining residents to leave immediately.
"Conditions are changing very quickly and there is a risk planes may not be able to land or fly safely anymore," the advisory said. "Anyone in Fort Chipewyan must evacuate while there are still flights available."
In a separate update to social media on Wednesday, Kendrick Cardinal, president of the Fort Chipewyan Métis local, said an increasing number of people have made their way to safety.
The evacuation of the community is around 85 per cent complete, he said.
"We've gotten to the point where we're now struggling to fill the planes, which is a good sign," Cardinal said.
He said the fire continues to pose a threat amid dry conditions and escalating winds.
Cardinal said he has heard reports that the fire is encroaching closer to Allison Bay, the community closest to the fire's edge. He said sprinklers are being installed and fire guards are being established, and more firefighters are moving in.
He urged residents to abide the evacuation order and register as required so that leadership knows they made it out.
"Our No. 1 mission is to make sure no one is left behind and everyone is accounted for."
The regional municipality, Mikisew Cree First Nation, the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, and Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation issued the joint evacuation order and are working together to co-ordinate a response.
A 36-year-old man has been arrested after allegedly trying to set a fire outside Vancouver City Hall late Friday night, police say.
Calgary city council reversed its decision to close the Inglewood Aquatic Centre Friday.
The Vancouver Police Board says its vice-chair has resigned following statements she posted to social media that were inconsistent with its code of conduct.
Hundreds of people showed up outside Queens Park Saturday afternoon to push back against the Ford government's controversial bike lane bill that would remove certain Toronto bike lanes to help address congestion.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has joined federal cabinet ministers and other politicians in condemning Friday night's anti-NATO demonstration in Montreal, calling the protesters' actions "appalling."
Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Gary Anandasangaree has formally apologized to Inuit in Nunavik for the federal government's role in the mass killing of sled dogs in the region in the 1950s and 1960s.
High winds and rain caused power outages to hundreds of homes and businesses in Prince County on Saturday.
Northerners will soon see RCMP officers with cameras on their person, as training for the body-worn cameras roll out for Mounties across the country.
Dozens of Indigenous women with a desire to learn how to hunt and to use traditional methods to prepare the animal will meet this weekend for the first-ever all-female deer hunt on Oneida Nation of the Thames territory.
A disgraced real-estate lawyer who this week admitted to pilfering millions in client money to support her and her family's lavish lifestyle was handcuffed in a Toronto courtroom Friday afternoon and marched out by a constable to serve a 20-day sentence for contempt of court, as her husband and mother watched.
A provincial child-care advocacy group says governments need to commit to pushing $10-a-day child care forward in Canada, but a conservative think tank says data shows it isn't working as intended in Newfoundland and Labrador.