The city of Fort McMurray in Alberta is being threatened by a massive wildfire, this has forced people to evacuate their homes. The wildfire started on Sunday and thereafter it has grown rapidly and has now intruded into the city of Fort McMurray and its surrounding areas.
The authorities ordered mandatory evacuations for the entire Fort McMurray on Tuesday. Around 60,000 people reside in the city. This has been termed as the largest evacuation in the history of the province. The airport remains open and only emergency travel is promoted. As of late Tuesday afternoon several home had been destroyed. The traffic came to a grinding halt and there were long ques at the gas stations as people wanted to get out into safety.
So far the wildfire has set ablaze over 26,000 hectares of land and forest and it continues to grow.
The humidity levels will reduce significantly due to ride in ambient temperatures because of the blaze. This would mean that the wildfire could spread more quickly than the previous days. A combination of a maximum temperature of 32°C and a relative humidity of 15% will aid in the spread.
Weather forecast for Fort McMurray on Wednesday says dry and warm with westerly winds. A cold front might bring some showers on Wednesday night. Unfortunately with the arrival of the cold front the west-northwesterly will pick up. This might spread the blaze. However, some relief is expected by early Thursday as cooler conditions and high humidity is expected.
Image Credit: thestar.com
