Canada evacuating 8000 people by air from raging wildfire
- 8 years ago
Canadian officials waited for dawn Friday to see whether it will be safe for a convoy of evacuees to get out of the fire-ravaged Fort McMurray area.
Meanwhile, a mass airlift of evacuees was expected to resume Friday morning, a day after 8,000 people were moved out.
In all, more than 80,000 people have left Fort McMurray, in the heart of Canada's oil sands, and officials say no deaths or injuries related to the fire have been reported.
The Alberta provincial government, which declared a state of emergency, said more than 1,100 firefighters, 145 helicopters, 138 pieces of heavy equipment and 22 air tankers were fighting the fire, but Chad Morrison, Alberta's manager of wildfire prevention, said rain is needed.
Meanwhile, a mass airlift of evacuees was expected to resume Friday morning, a day after 8,000 people were moved out.
In all, more than 80,000 people have left Fort McMurray, in the heart of Canada's oil sands, and officials say no deaths or injuries related to the fire have been reported.
The Alberta provincial government, which declared a state of emergency, said more than 1,100 firefighters, 145 helicopters, 138 pieces of heavy equipment and 22 air tankers were fighting the fire, but Chad Morrison, Alberta's manager of wildfire prevention, said rain is needed.