Monster Canadian fire threatens to DOUBLE in size while more than 80,000 devastated residents are forced to evacuate
More than 80,000 people have left Fort McMurray, Alberta, where the fire has torched 1,600 homes and buildings
Officials said the fire covers 249,571 acres and there is a ‘high potential that’ the it could double in size by the end of Saturday
No amount of resources will put out the blaze and only rain could end it, they added
The fire and the ensuing departures have forced a quarter of Canada’s oil output offline according to estimates
The government has approved a payment of $967 per adult and $387 per dependent at a cost of $77 million to Alberta
CLEMENCE MICHALLON
DAILYMAIL.COM
7 May 2016
Residents at oil field camps north of Fort McMurray, Alberta got a sobering drive-by view of their burned out city as a massive wildfire forced them out on Friday.
A convoy moved evacuees towards the south following the fire that could double in size by the end of Saturday and is expected to last for weeks.
More than 80,000 people have left Fort McMurray, in the heart of Canada’ oil sands, where the fire has torched 1,600 homes and buildings.
All intersections along the convoy route have been blocked off and evacuees are not being allowed back to check on their homes.
Police and military oversaw the procession of hundreds of vehicles on Friday while the mass evacuation by plane resumed.
Authorities hoped to get 5,500 people to safety by the end of Friday, a day after 8,000 flew out. Another 4,000 were expected to follow on Saturday.
The fire and the ensuing departures have forced a quarter of Canada’s oil output offline according to estimates and is expected to leave an impact on the country, which has already been hurt by a dramatic fall in the price of oil.
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