Fort McMurray fire spreads to 850 square kilometres; thousands being airlifted

[nitpicker]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/alberta/fort-mcmurray-exodus-swells-as-fires-rage-a-lot-of-people-are-working-to-get-you-out/article29883034/

Fort McMurray fire spreads to 850 square kilometres; thousands being airlifted

JUSTIN GIOVANNETTI and CARRIE TAIT
OUTSIDE FORT McMURRAY and LAC LA BICHE, ALTA. — The Globe and Mail

Published Thursday, May 05, 2016 5:30AM EDT
Last updated Friday, May 06, 2016 4:34AM EDT

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley says residents of Fort McMurray will not be returning home for some time as fires continue to burn within the city for a third day, the flames now covering an area of 850 square kilometres, about the size of Calgary. The wildfire in Fort McMurray could be the costliest disaster in Canadian history as estimates for insured damages run as high as $9-billion. Thousands of homes and businesses in Alberta’s fifth largest population centre have been destroyed.

Fire officials expect the inferno to continue growing for days as strong winds push flames into the dry forests surrounding the capital of Canada’s oil sands. On Thursday, the wildfires began began moving south, threatening the evacuation shelters where many local residents had been waiting to return home.

The province also began an airlift of the nearly 25,000 residents who are still trapped north of the city. Officials chose to use military and civilian transport planes to move the residents to Edmonton and Calgary after ruling out a plan to run a convoy of the evacuees through Fort McMurray because of fire and smoke. Highway 63, which runs through Fort McMurray, is the only way out.

Ms. Notley did not provide a timeline for residents to go back, but said it would be measured in weeks or months, not days. “I must be very, very direct about this: It is apparent that the damage to the community of Fort McMurray is extensive and the city is not safe for residents,” she said.
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