20 homes destroyed by wildfire, entire Indigenous community evacuated in northern Alta.
CTV
A 4,300-hectare wildfire has destroyed 20 homes in a northern Alberta Indigenous community and forced the entire community to leave.
A 4,300-hectare wildfire has destroyed 20 homes in a northern Alberta Indigenous community and forced the entire community to leave.
The police station and Northern Store have also been destroyed.
Thursday afternoon, the wildfire encroached on the barge landing that serves as the main access point for a northern Alberta Indigenous community.
According to the Government of Alberta, the fire is one of three threatening the community.
Just before 1 p.m., the chief of the Little Red River Cree Nation directed all residents and essential workers who were still in Fox Lake – one of three communities that make up the nation located south of the Peace River – to leave immediately.
"We only have approximately 30 minutes prior to the barge crossings being overrun," Chief Conroy Sewepagaham said in a 1:20 p.m. video update.
"We are still working on getting the remaining folks, which is approximately 17 from our count. We're going to do a final run throughout the community. We only got 30 minutes."