2,000
evacuees from northern Sask. fires expected in Regina
Emergency shelters already full in Prince Albert, Saskatoon
CBC,
30
July, 2015
Two
thousand evacuees are expected to take shelter in Regina by Tuesday's
end, after wildfires in northern Saskatchewan forced them from their
homes.
Kathy
Lavalee arrived from La Ronge with her two sons. The group is
now staying at the Credit Union EventPlex at Evraz Place.
She
said the seven-hour drive was a harrowing one through certain
highways up north.
"It
seemed like it was so unreal. It was, the smoke was just so heavy and
you could see fire spots on either side of the highway,"
she said.
Lavalee
said the heavy smoke was also unbearable back home.
"The
smoke was very thick and it had dropped a lot, it was very heavy. It
was making it very hard to breathe. First time in my lifetime,
where I've been evacuated out twice, in a month," the mother
said.
The
Saskatchewan Red Cross director said evacuation and
shelter efforts are among the largest in 30 years in the
province.
Cabins
and areas north of Sucker River, Sask. remain wrapped in smoke from
wildfires in northern Saskatchewan. (Submitted by Lisa Koshinsky)
A
large section of Highway 2 north of Prince Albert to La
Ronge remained closed Tuesday afternoon.
Louis
Laprise traveled more than 10 hours and 800 kilometres to
take refuge in Regina.
He
left La Loche because of a raging fire just 5 kilometres
east of the community.
"(We're)
lucky that we got out of there," he said.
Premier Brad
Wall urged everyone in the province to "pull together"
to help evacuees.
"We
really need to do that right now in terms of taking care of these
folks that are displaced from their home," he said.
"It's
kind of lonely right here. Without knowing anyone. Just
kind of out of touch," Laprise said of Regina.
University of Regina hosting evacuees
Approximately
85 evacuees were staying at the University of Regina on Tuesday
afternoon.
The
Red Cross moved displaced northern residents needing private rooms
due to nursing needs with infants or health issues to the campus, a
university representative confirmed.
She
said the school has a capacity for 170 people..
Arrivals started from Monday night
On
Monday night around 11:00 p.m., the first evacuees started arriving
at the Credit Union EventPlex in Evraz Place. Some 350 came
to the city during the night, Red Cross officials told CBC
News.
More
were on the way Tuesday morning after Prince Albert and
Saskatoon reached capacity.
The
Red Cross estimates as many as 4,500 people could be in temporary
shelters across the province by the end of the day.
The
Red Cross says once the space fills up at Evraz Place, they will look
to put evacuees in schools and hotels in the city.
Riley
Bloodworth took this photo earlier this week about five kilometres
from Montreal Lake. (Riley Bloodworth)
Regina firefighters and paramedics were helping out evacuees in Regina Monday night, while the Red Cross co-ordinated the registration processes.
At
least four Salvation Army personnel were there handing out meals and
snacks.
Some
said they were feeling the effects of the smoke in Regina, which
reduced visibility to under a kilometre by the late afternoon. A girl
from Grandmother's Bay told CBC the smoke burns her eyes and that she
tires easily.
Satellite
shows giant smoke plumes from Sask., Alberta forest fires
NASA
image shows extent of western Canadian wildfires
Satellite
images of the forest fires in northern Alberta and Saskatchewan have
shown the extent of the wildfires that have displaced thousands of
people this week.
The
National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Aqua satellite showed
plumes of smoke stretching from multiple points hundreds of
kilometres to the southeast.
Actively
burning areas are outlined in red, while forests appear dark green.
Smoke
has been raising health concerns in Regina and other communities that
are hundreds of kilometres south of the fires. People with asthma or
heart conditions have been advised to stay indoors.
There
were 115 fires burning in Saskatchewan on Monday.
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