More than 16,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes in the eastern Canadian province of Nova Scotia as one of hundreds of wildfires across the country threatened the city of Halifax, officials said Monday.
The blaze forced suburban residents to declare a state of emergency overnight from Sunday to Monday but it has not grown since, although it is burning out of control in the northwest…
The blaze forced suburban residents to quarantine overnight from Sunday to Monday and declare a state of emergency, but it has not grown since, although it continues to grow out of control northwest of the city.
Pictures shown on television showed plumes of smoke from the fire and several houses and vehicles were gutted. No injuries have been reported.
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston described the province as one “on the edge,” while Halifax Mayor Mike Savage said the city of 430,000 was facing “unprecedented” fire conditions.
Winds fanning the flames changed direction on Monday, sending the Halifax area wildfire back in the direction it came from.
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But officials said heavy rain was needed to extinguish the fires, and there were none in the forecast this week.
Wildfires were burning Monday in eight of Canada’s 13 provinces and territories.
In recent years, western Canada has been repeatedly affected by extreme weather events, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming.
