Nearly 10,000 people will have to be evacuated to Sept-Îles, where a state of emergency was declared Friday morning, due to forest fires threatening the territory. In Chapais, in Nord-du-Québec, 1,000 citizens will also have to be evacuated, said the Minister of Public Security, François Bonnardel.
“The low temperatures (and) the rain this morning in Sept-Îles helped a little. The situation is under control for the moment, ”said Mr. Bonnardel.
The mayor of Sept-Îles, Steve Beaupré, announced the state of emergency at a press conference on Friday morning. The Lac Daigle sector began to be evacuated in the morning, and residents of sectors east of the municipality’s downtown area will have to leave their homes by 4 p.m. the same day.
An emergency accommodation center will be opened in Port-Cartier for those who are unable to stay with relatives.
“We are talking about 2,000 (to) 3,000 people who currently need accommodation,” said the Minister of Public Security, saying that the civil security teams are in contact with the Red Cross.
“We continue to follow the evolution from hour to hour,” said Steeve Beaupré, inviting the population to stay informed of developments, while other measures could be announced during the day on Friday.
The Society for the Protection of Forests against Fire (SOPFEU) indicates that it is fires 172 and 215 that threaten Sept-Îles, and that “field work” is being carried out to limit their spread. Tank truck missions will also be set up, mentioned Isabelle Gariépy, from SOPFEU.
François Bonnardel said that 107 fires were active Friday morning across Quebec. “We are prioritizing 20 of these fires to protect the population, our Hydro-Québec infrastructure. We repatriated all the staff of SOPFEU. Nearly 400 people are on the ground,” said the minister.
Logging companies had not carried out any work in the forest since the beginning of the week. The Minister of Natural Resources and Forests, Maïté Blanchette Vézina, announced Friday that it is now prohibited for citizens of seven zones to carry out activities in the forest. Among these sectors, there are the North Shore and the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, specified the minister, saying that detailed maps will be published later during the day.
The Quebec government has also called on the help of other countries, namely the United States, Portugal and Mexico, to control the forest fires, said Ms. Blanchette Vézina.