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Canada wildfire to spread northeast, poses no threat to Alberta oil fields

Other News Materials 8 May 2016 05:23 (UTC +04:00)
On Wednesday, Alberta declared a state of emergency as the number of evacuees surpassed 80,000 and at least 1,600 buildings have been affected.
Canada wildfire to spread northeast, poses no threat to Alberta oil fields

On Wednesday, Alberta declared a state of emergency as the number of evacuees surpassed 80,000 and at least 1,600 buildings have been affected. The wildfire was discovered near Fort McMurray late on Sunday and spread into the city on Tuesday as winds blew in the direction of populated areas.

"We still expect the fire to grow to the northeastern connection... and we feel that there is good potential that the fire will reach the Saskatchewan border by this evening," Morrison said in an update broadcast by Canadian networks Saturday.

Morrison reassured that the 600-square-mile fire continued to move away from the community and the oil sands facilities.

"We do expect the fire to bump up against the edge of the south end of the Suncor facility today. These sites are very resilient to wildfire largely because they're free and clear of vegetation and trees," he underscored.

The Department of the Environment, meanwhile, issued air quality warnings across northwestern Saskatchewan as smoke from the Alberta wildfires spread across the provincial towns.

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