VANCOUVER, July 3 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Hundreds of people were
evacuated in western Canada as fires added to the unprecedented heat
wave in the region, which for days has been baking in record-breaking
temperatures.
The village of Lytton, 250 kilometers northeast of
Vancouver, was evacuated on Wednesday night because of a fire that
spread quickly.
The fire came a day after the village, in the province of British
Columbia, set a Canadian record high temperature on Tuesday of 49.6
degrees Celsius.
“A fire … is threatening structures and the safety of residents,”
a statement signed by Mayor Jan Polderman on Wednesday said.
“The fire situation is extremely dangerous right now. Emergency
crews are doing everything they can to support the people of Lytton,”
British Columbia premier John Horgan commented on Twitter.
The evacuation order was extended Wednesday night to residents of
about 100 properties north of Lytton.
“An exceptionally strong ridge of high pressure over British
Columbia will continue to bring record-breaking temperatures over the
next couple of days,” Environment Canada said in a bulletin issued
early Thursday morning for the Prince George, BC area.
“The duration of this heat wave is concerning as there is little
relief at night with elevated overnight temperatures,” it added.
On Thursday, the heat wave continued to move eastward into the
central Canadian prairies.
In addition to British Columbia, heatwave warnings have been issued
for the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and parts of the
Northwest Territories, and now northern Ontario.
In addition to Western Canada, the US states of Washington and
Oregon, across the border, have also been sweltering under record
temperatures this week and several hundred sudden deaths have been
reported. — NNN-AGENCIES
