LABRADOR CITY, N.L. – Ground crews are set to begin dousing a roaring wildfire near Labrador City that forced thousands of people to evacuate last week.
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey says crews on the ground have been doing preliminary work around the perimeter of the fire, while water bombers from the province and Quebec attack it from above.
Furey says New Brunswick is also providing help, but resources from the rest of Canada are limited as fires burn across the country.
The premier held a news conference today from Halifax, where he says fire and emergency preparedness has been discussed at length during the three-day meeting of Canada’s premiers.
Labrador City is home to about 7,450 people and is the second community in the region to be evacuated because of forest fires in as many months.
Furey says the 14-square-kilometre blaze remains about six kilometres from the town and about one kilometre from the community’s landfill.
Nearby Wabush, N.L., and Fermont, Que., are on evacuation alert in case the fire gets any closer.
All three mines in the area — Montreal-based Champion Iron Ltd. in Fermont, Que.; Toronto-based Iron Ore Co. of Canada in Labrador City; and Minnesota-based Tacora Resources Inc. in Wabush — are temporarily shut down because of the fire.
Labrador City Mayor Belinda Adams officially declared a state of emergency Monday evening, a decision she says will give the town access to more emergency services.
Residents of Labrador City were ordered to evacuate on Friday evening and drive six hours east to Happy Valley-Goose Bay, where Furey says more than 6,000 evacuees have checked in with emergency services teams.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2024.
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