The city of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, was nearly empty Friday morning as a deadline to evacuate, imposed by territorial officials, neared.
All 22,000 residents of the capital city were ordered to evacuate Wednesday night as a wildfire crept closer.
More than 230 fires across the territory have forced half of the population to leave their homes, according to National Defence Minister Bill Blair. A list of evacuation orders can be found on the N.W.T. government website.
The fire threatening Yellowknife was last mapped at 166,946 hectares and is 15 kilometres away from the city, according to the N.W.T. government.
The fire hasn’t seen significant growth in the last 24 hours, according to Mike Westwick, fire information officer for the N.W.T. government.
“We’ve seen openings with smoke and visibility so we’ve been able to take advantage of that and have aircraft in the sky. It’s been an air show over here.
Firefighting crews have been targeting the east flank of the fire, the side closest to Yellowknife, Westwick said.
“We’re taking advantage today of a little bit cooler weather than was forecast, which is putting a bit of a damper on fire activity today,” he said.
Westwick said there are firefighters from South Africa, New Brunswick, Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan assisting with the fight.
Canadian Armed Forces members have been deployed to the territory to help with logistical planning, evacuations and firefighting.
A CAF reconnaissance team deployed to Yellowknife last weekend, followed by 120 soldiers from the 2nd Canadian Division and 30 aviators, Blair said.
“I can confirm that the first military evacuation flight from Yellowknife took place last night on board a CC-130 Hercules aircraft, which safely carried 79 long term care residents to Edmonton,” said Blair.
Two more Hercules aircraft and one CC-150 Polaris will be supporting evacuation flights to Edmonton and Calgary, a CAF spokesperson said, while two Griffon helicopters and one Twin Otter are supporting firefighting near Yellowknife.
Retired general Tom Lawson, who served as Canada’s top soldier from 2012-15, said Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) members can be called in for evacuations where there are elderly, less mobile or sick people who wouldn’t be able to get out easily on their own.
“It’s difficult cases like that that the RCAF is going to be asked to look after on top of people who need to get out quickly,” said Lawson.
Blair said CAF members have been mopping up, clearing debris, dousing hotspots and constructing fire breaks to stop the spread to Yellowknife and the nearby Indigenous community of Dettah.
On Thursday, about 1,500 people left on evacuation flights, plus more on commercial planes.
More flights, carrying up to 1,800 people out of the city, are scheduled for Friday, according to officials.
There will be a full evacuation of the hospital and inmates have already been sent to jails in Alberta and Yukon, officials said.
The federal government is delivering funding to eligible First Nations through the Indigenous Services Canada Emergency Management Assistance Program.
It is also giving $13 million to N.W.T. over five years, in an agreement, to purchase firefighting equipment, as well as to hire and train personnel to combat the wildfires plaguing the territory, according to Julie Dabrusin, parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources.
Aid for evacuees will be sorted through the territorial government. Residents and evacuees can call 811 in the territory and 1-844-259-1793 out of territory to ask questions about evacuation.
N.W.T. Premier Caroline Cochrane urged residents to take the evacuation order seriously.
“There are a number of people in the community … that are refusing to leave,” said Cochrane.
“Whenever there’s an evacuation and people stay, they don’t only put themselves at risk, they put the firefighters and first responders (at risk).”
Repeat evacuations strain military
Military members have been called to assist in numerous natural disasters this year so far, and Lawson said though protecting Canadians is the first priority of the Forces, this puts a strain on members.
“It does put stress and pressure on the Canadian Armed Forces who typically are training for carrying out their duties under combat conditions,” said Lawson.
“With the international situation growing increasingly fraught, day by day, there’s going to be some pressure.”
Lawson added members who are already overseas will stay there in this sort of situation, but the Forces may need more resources moving forward to manage the increased demand for emergency aid.
“With these efforts becoming more and more frequent, as climate change takes hold, that does put all kinds of new stress on the military,” he said.
— With files from The Canadian Press