Alberta’s provincial government declared a state of emergency after wildfires spread across the western Canadian province.
Saturday night, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, head of the ruling United Conservative Party (UCP), declared a provincial state of emergency due to the “unprecedented” wildfires.
“After reviewing the province’s current situation and our response options, we declared a provincial state of emergency to protect the safety, health, and welfare of Albertans,” Smith said, according to CTV News Canada.24K evacuated
Smith also said C$1.5 billion ($1.12 billion) has been put aside as a contingency because they know a significant amount could need to be spent on emergency management,
The declaration empowers the government in extreme situations, such as by giving it access to emergency funds and better intergovernmental coordination, Smith and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services Mike Ellis said.
By Saturday at 7 p.m. ET, more than 24,000 Albertans had been evacuated from their homes, with 110 active wildfires across the province, and 36 out of control.
“It has been an extremely challenging day for firefighters here,” said Christie Tucker, an information unit manager for Alberta Wildfire, reports Reuters. “We were battling very strong winds and hot weather, and those winds produced extreme wildfire activity.”. On Saturday,
Tucker estimated that about 122,000 hectares (301,469 acres) have burned across the province this year. “It is very unusual for us to see this much fire activity this early in the season,” said Tucker earlier on Saturday, according to the BBC.
The worst-hit areas include Drayton Valley, about 140 kilometers (87 miles) west of the provincial capital Edmonton, and Fox Lake, some 550 km (342 miles) north of the city, where 20 homes were consumed by fire.
