The wild fires raging in Newfoundland and Labrador are getting closer to Churchill Falls where residents had to be evacuated Wednesday evening.
In a statement released Thursday, Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro said the fire did not cross the Churchill River and was “5-6 kilometers from the municipality.”
“The wind has changed drastically. The wind reached 70 km/h, which caused the fire to advance two kilometers in 45 minutes. This led to the evacuation of residents from the town of Churchill Falls,” explained the Minister of Newfoundland and Labrador, Andrew Furey, during a press briefing.
On Wednesday evening, residents of Churchill Falls, a small town of about 700 people, were ordered to evacuate due to wildfires growing out of control. They were all invited to go to Happy Valley-Goose Bay, a three-hour drive away, it was said.
The local hydroelectric power station, which supplies Newfoundland and Labrador, but also Quebec, is located nearly 4 kilometers east of the municipality’s city center.
Help also coming from Quebec
Several people from neighboring towns located in Quebec and Labrador decided to offer their help to the evacuees.
“There is a great solidarity that is established among people in the northern regions, even as far as Fermont in Quebec, there is one who offered his house. There are organizations in Happy Valley-Goose Bay at the YMCA, there are some that offer their camping trailer and their house,” explained Éric Cyr, editor-in-chief of the Journal Le Trait d’Union du Nord, in an interview with LCN.
To combat the fire, four water bombers have been deployed and four helicopters will also try to keep the fires at bay.
“Forest firefighters, whether near Quebec or in Labrador, primarily protect urban infrastructure, towns and hydroelectric infrastructure or mines,” said the journalist who grew up in Labrador.
A situation update is due at noon Eastern Time.
