(Sept-Îles) Even if the forest fires are progressing in an encouraging way on the North Shore, the citizens of Sept-Îles will have to wait at least 24 more hours before returning to their homes.
At a press conference on Sunday morning, the mayor of the municipality, Steeve Beaupré, confirmed that the evacuation orders in effect for the sectors of Moisie, Les Plages and Lac-Daigle will be extended until at least Monday.
Mr. Beaupré indicated that he understands that this news will not be easy to welcome for the approximately 4,500 residents affected, but he recalled that the municipality wants to avoid at all costs allowing people to return to their homes, only to force them to evacuate again if the picture of the situation changes.
Due to continued evacuation orders, schools are expected to be closed on Monday – a final decision was expected late morning on this.
The state of emergency triggered Friday morning has also been extended for another five days in Sept-Îles, but Mayor Beaupré stressed that this does not mean that evacuations will be extended in the same way.
On Saturday afternoon, approximately 100 Canadian Armed Forces personnel arrived in the area to help with firefighting operations. Sunday morning they were planning their deployment for the day.
Another hundred soldiers were expected in the area over the next few hours.
The return of precipitation at the beginning of the week should facilitate operations on the ground, according to the authorities.