FORT MCMURRAY, Alberta — After Canada’s prime minister took a helicopter tour of wildfire-ravaged Fort McMurray on Friday to assess the damage, he said he doesn’t think most Canadians comprehend the scope of what happened in the oil sands capital, where more than 88,000 people were forced to evacuate.
Justin Trudeau arrived in the northern Alberta city almost two weeks after a massive wildfire ignited, tearing through the isolated region and surrounding areas, causing several oil sands operations to shut down. Alberta officials say they will have a plan within two weeks for getting residents back into their homes. Trudeau said that despite following updates and watching images on TV, the scale of the disaster didn’t hit him until he visited the area.
“I don’t think Canadians yet understand what happened. They know there was a fire. They’re beginning to hear the wonderful news that so much of the town was saved,” he told 150 firefighters and first responders after his aerial tour by military helicopter.
“But they don’t yet understand that that wasn’t a fluke of wind or rain or luck that happened. This was the extraordinary response by people such as yourself. The work you did to save so much of this community, to save so much of this city and its downtown core … was unbelievable.”
Fort McMurray Fire Chief Darby Allen, who led the fight against the fierce fire, said having the prime minister visit is a morale boost.
“Right now the residents aren’t there, but there are hundreds and hundreds of emergency workers. I think they’ll get a lift from that,” he said.
Melissa Blake, mayor of the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, accompanied Trudeau, saying it was critical for him to tour the burned neighborhoods.
“Once you see it, you know not just how daunting the work will be but how important it is to make it back to what it was before,” she said.
More than 80,000 residents had to evacuate their homes May 3 as the flames carved a destructive path through the city.
The fire is now 930 square miles in size and has moved away from the city. It’s expected to burn in forested areas for at least a few more weeks. The more than 80,000 evacuees have begun receiving direct financial assistance from the Alberta government and the Canadian Red Cross as officials asked for patience in getting residents home.
