95% of Yellowknife has now been evacuated due to N.W.T. wildfires

Story by CBC/Radio-Canada •

Northwest Territories officials said on Friday evening that more than 19,000 people have fled from Yellowknife due to wildfires and urged those who remain to also leave as soon as possible.

The N.W.T. government on Wednesday ordered Yellowknife's 20,000 or so residents to leave the capital city — and urged people who couldn't leave by road to register for flights out of Yellowknife — as a nearby wildfire threatened to reach the city within days.

Yellowknife Mayor Rebecca Alty on Friday evening again urged the roughly five per cent of residents who haven't left yet to urgently do so.

"Everyone should leave tonight," Alty said in news conference.


Evacuees board a school bus headed for an airport in Yellowknife on Friday. (Jennifer Gauthier/Reuters)© Jennifer Gauthier/Reuters

Shane Thompson, N.W.T.'s minister of municipal and community affairs, echoed Alty's sentiment.

"You endanger yourself and others by staying," Thompson said.
Weather helps slow spread

On the firefighting front, Mike Westwick, a territorial fire information officer, said the blazes have not grown much in the last couple of days due to good weather conditions and suppression efforts.

"It was a little cooler today than forecasted and with some cloud cover, along with high level of moisture in the air, [the weather] did put a bit of a damper on fire activity for much of the day," Westwick said Friday evening.

He said the fire near Yellowknife was still 15 kilometres northwest of the city, having not moved much closer through Friday.

However, he was cautious to note that the threat has not yet passed and the next few days are expected to be dry.

Crews from the Canadian Armed Forces and firefighters from South Africa and Saskatchewan are assisting efforts to battle the more than 200 wildfires across N.W.T.

Westwick said Friday evening that wildfires are 10 kilometres south of Hay River, nine kilometres south of Jean-Marie River and 14 kilometres east of Kakisa.
More regions regain telecommunications

Additionally on Friday, NorthwesTel said internet, phone and cell service has been restored to the following communities:
Enterprise.
Fort Resolution.
Fort Smith.
Hay River.
High Level, Alta.

Outages remain in Jean-Marie River and Kakisa, N.W.T.