Every day since a wildfire began menacing the city of Fort McMurray, Alta., grimy, exhausted firefighters have been spilling out of helicopters at the end of another one of the toughest shifts around.
Hard, manual labour?
B次元官网网址淵es,B次元官网网址� said Gavin Hojka, incident commander in charge of 172 wildland firefighters. B次元官网网址淰ery.B次元官网网址�
There is no road access to the front lines of the fire, which did not grow Thursday thanks to cool, damp weather and the hard work of the crews.
Teams of between eight and 20 are dropped off by helicopters early each the morning. They make their way on foot to the flames carrying pumps, chainsaws, shovels, axes and hoses B次元官网网址� lots and lots of hoses.
B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檒l be bringing a dozen boxes of hose for the day,B次元官网网址� Hojka said.
B次元官网网址淓very single day weB次元官网网址檙e bringing out more hose. There are thousands and thousands of feet of hose.B次元官网网址�
Each box of hose weighs about 27 kilograms. The pumps that fill them weigh about 30 kilograms, carried on someoneB次元官网网址檚 back to the nearest beaver pond, stream or river.
With water and hand tools they attack the fire for between 12 and 14 hours at a stretch, fuelled only by the bag lunch in their packs. Then the helicopter comes to pick them up for a little rest before theyB次元官网网址檙e back at it.
B次元官网网址淲e do everything we can to bring them home at night,B次元官网网址� said Hojka. B次元官网网址淲e make sure we have someone flying around in a helicopter being an eye in the sky, a lookout.B次元官网网址�
Still, the fire remained out of control and about 6,600 residents of the oilsands hub remained out of their homes.
Neighbourhoods such as Beacon Hill and Grayling Terrace were deserted Thursday, garbage cans lined up neatly on driveways beside cars, trucks and ATVs. Police, emergency workers and birds were the only ones around.
In Grayling Terrace, crews were setting up sprinklers capable of spraying 600 litres of water a minute on trees and bush near the homes. In Beacon Hill, young poplars near homes were sprayed a deep shade of orange from fire retardant B次元官网网址� a portion of the 168,000 litres of the phosphate-based chemical thatB次元官网网址檚 been sprayed around the city.
Still, the fire remained about 200 square kilometres in size and just under six kilometres from Fort McMurrayB次元官网网址檚 southern outskirts. Despite the favourable weather, evacuees arenB次元官网网址檛 expected to be allowed back until after the long weekend.
The cityB次元官网网址檚 court system was temporarily shut down and schools were closed.
Thousands of residents fled the city on Tuesday, fearing a repeat of the 2016 wildfire that forced out the entire community and torched more than 2,400 homes.
But the city was slowly coming back to as normal as possible.
Grocery stores were open and well stocked, with an abundance of toilet paper. Restaurants, many of which closed Tuesday, reopened.
B次元官网网址淲e closed down for the initial day, just so all of our staff could look after their families,B次元官网网址� said Shelby Thompson of MontanaB次元官网网址檚 BBQ and Bar.
B次元官网网址淲e opened the next day,B次元官网网址� Thompson said. B次元官网网址淩egular hours.B次元官网网址�
At the cityB次元官网网址檚 Peter Pond Mall, there was initial confusion about TuesdayB次元官网网址檚 evacuation order and stores shut their doors, said Shauna Hannam, the mallB次元官网网址檚 specialty leasing manager.
Many employees, fearing a 2016 rerun, B次元官网网址渞ushed to get ahead of the game,B次元官网网址� she said.
B次元官网网址淔or a lot of people, it was history repeating itself: B次元官网网址業B次元官网网址檓 just going to get my family out of here right now.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淭he next day, when half the city wasnB次元官网网址檛 evacuated, thatB次元官网网址檚 when the confusion set in. People werenB次元官网网址檛 sure whether they were going to work.B次元官网网址�
Slowly, they are. Hannam said more than half the mallB次元官网网址檚 stores were open Thursday.
Other fires across Western Canada have also forced residents out of their homes.
In northern British Columbia, a blaze threatening Fort Nelson was about 120 square kilometres in size but heading away from the town. The community of 4,700 remained under an evacuation order.
Rob Fraser, the mayor of the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality, said some structures were damaged on rural properties outside Fort Nelson. He did not say how many or if they included homes.
Cooler temperatures and higher humidity were expected to help firefighters over the coming days. Fraser said there was no timeline for when evacuees might return.
B次元官网网址淲e donB次元官网网址檛 want to be in that situation where we turn people back to the community and three days later we just send them out again,B次元官网网址� Fraser said. B次元官网网址淭hat would be just a nightmare.B次元官网网址�
In Manitoba, 675 people have been forced out of the area in and around the northwestern community of Cranberry Portage. There was no word on when they might be able to return.
The province said the fire remained less than two kilometres from the community. Power and phone service have been restored.
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