{"id":20903,"date":"2023-08-18T15:16:24","date_gmt":"2023-08-18T22:16:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/ghost-town-thousands-continue-to-flee-yellowknife-as-wildfires-loom\/"},"modified":"2023-08-18T15:16:26","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T22:16:26","slug":"ghost-town-thousands-continue-to-flee-yellowknife-as-wildfires-loom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/ghost-town-thousands-continue-to-flee-yellowknife-as-wildfires-loom\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Ghost town’: thousands continue to flee Yellowknife as wildfires loom"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Yellowknife faded into a ghost town in the face of looming wildfires Friday as the mayor of the territorial capital urged residents to leave and not fear looting.<\/p>\n

\u201cGrocery stores aren\u2019t open. There\u2019s no services here in town. The smoke\u2019s going to get thick, so really encouraging folks (to) head out now,\u201d Rebecca Alty told CBC News Friday morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease don\u2019t spread rumours. There\u2019s no looting in Yellowknife.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRCMP are patrolling the neighbourhoods. I contacted them this morning. I saw them on my walk to work this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no looting. Your homes are safe. You\u2019ve gotta lock up and head out of town.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thousands of residents in the city of 20,000 continued to leave by air or road Friday ahead of a noon deadline to leave. The goal is to get everyone out should the fire, about 15 kilometres from the city\u2019s outskirts, advance and cut off access.<\/p>\n

Officials said roads would stay open and flights would continue past the deadline as long as it is safe.<\/p>\n

Inside Yellowknife and surrounding communities, once-busy streets were emptied, with stores and businesses closed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a ghost town,\u201d said Kieron Testart, who was going door-to-door in the nearby communities of Dettah and NDilo on a cold, smoky and windy morning to check on people.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is kind of the D-Day for the fire effort. If it\u2019s going to get bad, it\u2019s going to get bad today.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Yellowknife, gas stations \u2013 if they had fuel \u2013 were still operating as of Friday morning. One grocery store and a pharmacy remained open \u2013 as did a bar, where exhausted workers were gathering at the end of long shifts.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of like having a pint at the end of the world,\u201d Testart said, describing the evacuation so far as orderly.<\/p>\n

People are clearing out for the most part, he said, although some First Nations people have chosen to take shelter in cabins or camps out on the land.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur members know the land better than anyone else,\u201d Testart said. \u201cWe\u2019re confident they\u2019ll be safe out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fire information officer Mike Westwick said work continued to battle the flames.<\/p>\n

\u201cBusy skies today,\u201d said Westwick.<\/p>\n

A total of 11 air tankers were flying, with another plane dropping fire retardant. A 10-kilometre fire line had been dug, backed up by 20 kilometres of hose and a plethora of pumps \u2013 \u201cthe most extensive heavy water operation we\u2019ve ever seen in the territory,\u201d Westwick said.<\/p>\n

However, winds from the north and northwest were predicted for both Friday and Saturday, threatening to wreak havoc.<\/p>\n

Also, hoped-for rain didn\u2019t materialize overnight, with a scant millimetre falling.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth of those winds would push the fires in directions we don\u2019t want them to go,\u201d Westwick said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve still got some really difficult days ahead. There\u2019s no denying that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The evacuation of Yellowknife was ordered late Wednesday, and sprinklers, water cannons and fire guards were set up.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, in addition to commercial planes, about 1,500 people left on evacuation flights.<\/p>\n

Officials said more flights are scheduled for today that could take about 1,800 people out of the city.<\/p>\n

The main highway out has been reported as having steady, orderly convoys of vehicles headed for evacuation centres in various parts of Alberta.<\/p>\n

Several other communities in the territory, including the town of Hay River, ordered residents out earlier this week.<\/p>\n

Shane Thompson, the N.W.T.\u2019s environment and communities minister, told a news conference late Thursday that the fire situation remains critical.<\/p>\n

There are 236 fires burning in the territory.<\/p>\n

\u201cI urge all residents under evacuation orders to please adhere to them as they are issued,\u201d Thompson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese orders are never issued lightly and always consider our collective health and safety. You could be jeopardizing your safety and that of others.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a92023 THE CANADIAN PRESS<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n