After touring Fort McMurray on Monday, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley says that about 90 per cent of the city remains intact, including the hospital and all schools.
鈥淚鈥檓 told we lost about 2,400 structures,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e saved over 25,000.鈥�
Although there are many 鈥渉eartbreaking images,鈥� Notley said the community 鈥渉as the capacity for people to return to it, to be a home, for people to rebuild their lives.鈥�
Notley said she expects to be able to 鈥減rovide a schedule for return within two weeks.鈥�
Notley emphasized that there are still 鈥渟mouldering hotspots,鈥� downed power lines and a lack of services like electricity and water, so the city is not safe for residents. Anyone who tries to drive there will be turned back by police.
Notley said that nearly 90,000 evacuees have registered with the province online and more than 30,000 have settled in the Edmonton area, with 5,000 in Calgary and 2,000 in Lac La Biche. Many others have not indicated their location. She encouraged them to
鈥楾rue Alberta Heroes鈥�
Notley thanked first responders, who she said are 鈥渢rue Alberta heroes.鈥�
麻豆传媒 also got a closer look at the city Monday. Some neighbourhoods, including Beacon Hill, are almost completely levelled. There was also extensive damage in the Abasand area. A few structures on the edge of downtown were lost, but the vast majority was saved.
Fort McMurray Fire Chief Darby Allen told reporters on the bus tour that firefighters 鈥済ave it their all鈥� and that he believes much more of the town would have been lost without their heroic efforts.
"I truly believe nothing else could have been done that wasn't done to protect the people and the structures within our city," he later told reporters. "They're rewriting their formulas on how fires behave based on this fire."
Allen told the story of one firefighter who lost the battle against his own home. 鈥淚nstead of dropping his nozzle,鈥� Allen said, he continued working for 22 hours straight.
Fire still growing
Chad Morrison, a provincial wildfire officer, said Monday evening that the fire that started just over a week ago has now grown to 200,000 hectares (2,000 square kilometres) and continues to burn about 30 kilometres from the Saskatchewan border.
However, Morrison said that firefighters 鈥渃ontinue to hold the line,鈥� protecting all populated areas, including Gregoire Lake Estates, Fort McMurray First Nation, Anzac and the city.
He also said cooler temperatures expected on Tuesday and Wednesday should help. 鈥淲e expect good firefighting days ahead,鈥� he said.
Earlier in the day, information officer Matthew Anderson told CTV鈥檚 Canada AM that the fire could take months to fully extinguish.
Anderson later told 麻豆传媒 Channel that the fire is still listed as 鈥渙ut of control鈥� and is expected to keep growing.
鈥淗owever, the rate of growth is greatly reduced based on this downturn in the weather we鈥檙e having,鈥� he said.
So far, two deaths have been linked to the fire. Emily Ryan, 15, and her stepmother's nephew, Aaron Hodgson, died last Wednesday in a vehicle crash while fleeing.
Economic impact
Premier Notley said the fire 鈥渨ill have economic effects in our province and on our national economy.鈥�
Oil companies including Syncrude and Suncor have suspended operations,
Notley is set to meet with industry leaders on Tuesday to discuss a plan to get production back on track.
With files from The Canadian Press
