Heavy smoke from nearby wildfires fills the sky in Yellowknife on Tuesday, August 15, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Angela Gzowski
Wildfires continue to menace the capital of the Northwest Territories, with the latest update putting the blaze 16 kilometres from the outskirts of Yellowknife.
Residents in some parts of the capital have been put on evacuation notice, meaning they should have belongings packed and be ready to leave quickly should the flames spread.
Yellowknife, with 20,000 residents, is one of many communities in the N.W.T. grappling with more than 200 wildfires that have already burned an area four times the size of Prince Edward Island.
The territorial government declared a state of emergency late Tuesday, allowing it to access resources to combat what it’s calling an unprecedented wildfire season.
Many highways have been closed by the fires and the territory is mounting what officials have called the largest airlift in its history.
Evacuations have been ordered for Fort Smith, Enterprise, Jean Marie River and Hay River, and displaced persons are relocating to temporary shelters set up as far south as Calgary.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 16, 2023.
