Evacuations leave Fort McMurray residents and oil operations in limbo
Global News
Evacuees, fire officials and oilsands operations around Fort McMurray are closely watching as wildfires threaten their properties.
Evacuees, fire officials and oilsands operations around Fort McMurray are closely watching as wildfires threaten their properties.
At the Calgary International Airport on Wednesday, a Fort McMurray family paced around the luggage area, looking to retrieve their baggage from a flight they were forced to leave before takeoff.
It’s the second time they’ve done so in the last two days.
They were on their return from a dream vacation with their five-year-old daughter. When they landed in North America on Tuesday, they learned parts of their community were being evacuated.
“Clearly we are not prepared for that sort of an evacuation. All my important stuff is home. I didn’t carry all my documents with me so I have the urge to go back. But as everybody’s saying — our insurance company and everyone else — it’s not safe,” said Nabahat Sana.
She said friends had urged her not to fly home on Tuesday, but she was compelled to try again on Wednesday. Her insurance company called her while she was on the plane.
“They say, ‘As per our information, you’re not supposed to go back.’ So if we go back, it will be on us,” said Sana.
They still have memories of the gridlock as they fled fast-moving fires that destroyed part of the community in 2016. And she wants to spare her daughter the possibility of similar trauma.
