MADRID, 18 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Canadian authorities have declared a state of emergency in the city of Kelowna, located in the southeastern part of Canada and where more than 140,000 people live, due to the incessant advance of a forest fire, while further north, in Yellowknife, they continue against the clock the evacuation works also due to the fire.
In the case of the fire that is stalking Kelowna, in British Columbia, its rapid advance has already forced the evacuation of 2,500 people to be ordered and some 5,500 homes to be placed on notice. A highway has been closed and the authorities fear what may happen in the next few hours.
A person in charge of the office that responds to forest fires in the region, Cliff Chapman, has warned that the weather conditions, marked by high temperatures and strong winds, anticipate “the most complicated 48 hours of summer in relation to fires,” according to the BBC network.
Canada is also closely watching the situation in the Northwest Territories, after authorities recommended the complete evacuation of the regional capital, Yellowknife, with more than 20,000 inhabitants. The authorities have given the population a deadline until this Friday night, although they have asked that they not wait until the last moment.
In fact, they have organized flights for all those people who cannot go out by road. On Thursday, some 1,500 people have left thanks to these official flights, while for this Friday some 1,800 places had been planned, with an eye on, for example, people who require special medical treatment or inmates and workers in a prison.
The North American country has been experiencing one of its worst waves of fires for weeks, with more than 5,500 registered fires since the beginning of the year. The authorities estimate the number of burned hectares to date at more than 13 million, a figure without historical precedent.
