(Edmonton) Alberta Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis announced that a province-wide state of emergency that was declared nearly a month ago to deal with Unprecedented forest fires will end Saturday at midnight.
Ellis told a news conference that the wildfire situation in Alberta remains serious, but overall things have improved significantly and are expected to continue to improve.
He assured support will not stop for communities affected by active wildfires, including Fort Chipewyan, which remains evacuated due to a large fire burning about seven kilometers away.
A state of emergency was put in place on May 6 to expedite the coordination of firefighting resources and support for evacuees.
Alberta Wildfire’s Christie Tucker says the Rocky Mountain wildfire threatening Fort Chipewyan remains a top priority and 85 Canadian troops were en route to the area Saturday afternoon.
Mme Tucker told the press conference that the fire was calm through Friday evening, but crews were working to keep the flames from spreading to the community and that rain was expected in the area over the course of of the next few days.