It's raining fire.

[red langford]

Crazy video of Forth MacMurray evacuation from a dash cam.

People were given as little as 20 minutes to gather their stuff and you can see from this video, 20 minutes may not have been enough.

Sorry if this is too off topic Robin. You can take it down if you like.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i13EDTnoj1w

 

[Canotrouge]

It is indeed crazy and scary... 90 000 people evacuated in like 48 hrs... This is sad cause in the last 5 months over 40 000 jobs have been lost because of the dive of the price of the barrel of oil....

 

[Robin]

That's a pretty scary situation those folks where in, hopefully the loss of life stays low.

 

[Canotrouge]

Latest news, it went from 75 square kilometre to 850 square km, in 24 hrs... I didi n't hear or read anything so far regarding death. All that started most likely from some one tossing a cigaret butch out the window wile driving along the highway....

 

[Alan Gage]

Wow. That was pretty intense.

Alan

 

[Canotrouge]

Wow. That was pretty intense.

Alan

That IS pretty intense, since they are far form controlling that fire. There is an other fire south of us that is quite large, the Alaska Highway is closed to the trafic. I think it will be a hot summer in terms of forest fire this year, no snow pack to talk of, no precipitation, early spring. the forest ground is already bone dry!

 

[Peach Canoe]

Rex Murphy, one of my heroes, did a nice piece on The National tonight.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/thenational/rex-murphy-fort-mcmurray-wildfire-1.3569425

 

[Canotrouge]

Indeed he did, just listened to it a minute ago.

 

[Mihun09]

Manitoba is that dry already as well. Some partial travel restrictions imposed yesterday for South and Eastern Manitoba due to high to extreme fire risk. Yesterday was 94F and a fire started just east of Wallace Lake that government mapping shows to be 10,000 hectares (38 sq miles) already and today we have NW winds gusting to 70kph (45 mph) so most likely it will push it into WCPP where there is already 3 fires burning. This could be a really bad year for fires in Canada.

 

[scoutergriz]

I think it might be a good time to post this-
http://cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/home

 

[Rippy]

Looking at pics of the aftermath in Fort McMurray this morning. Unbelievable, looks like a war zone. How would you even start over? Your home is gone, your job burned down. Truly sad for what these people are/will go through.
I guess if you got out with your family you got out with something that can't be replaced, the rest is just stuff. Still devastating. Dave

 

[Rippy]

It's been smoky / hazy here in Iowa all day, the wind seems to be NNW.

 

[Wyo George]

Dang that sucks, we've had a wet winter and early spring flooding (today) which has historically been followed by a dry summer with lots of extra vegetation to burn up. I hate it for the folks displaced and losing everything, it's rough times for a lot of folks right now.

 

[Jim Dodd]

That is one scary video !

And Yes, I got a whiff of it this AM. A low hanging haze in the air here too..

 

[sweeper]

I can't imagine sitting in traffic like that waiting to make the intersection. Everyone I've showed the vid to is horrified.

 

[Iskweo]

It is not looking good for our trip in two weeks as the larger fire here has changed direction and is headed north now. Wallace Lake campground has been closed and the cottages evacuated. It will be a race to see what gets there first...the fire or the rain. They are forecasting flurries on Friday of all things. Geeeeze.
This kind of puts a damper on Martin and company's plans to head out of Wallace Lake on friday morning. Although it would be a great story....the fire held off long enough for them to set out in a snow storm? You cant make this crap up.

Christy

 

[red langford]

I'm in kenora working for the support crew on the caddy lake fire. Spent 2 days at fire base in red lake. South west part of park is burnt good. We'll see what sort of rain falls in the next few days

 

[Marten]

Had great plans to park at Wallace Lake near Bissett Manitoba and head for Stonehouse Lake on the Bloodvein via Leaf, Kostek, Aikens and the Tea Pail Portage. I had never been in this part of Atikika PP. If Manitoba issued a travel ban Plan B was to enter WCPP from the east side. Now we are on Plan C, Quetico.

 

[Guest]

I can't imagine sitting in traffic like that waiting to make the intersection. Everyone I've showed the vid to is horrified.

Those stuck in traffic videos, especially the “Oh crap, it’s getting hot” audio portions freaked me out. What the heck do you do when there is only one road and the choices are head north or south stuck in traffic?

As the planet gets funkier I fear I have become inured to catastrophe, but this is one somehow strikes me close to home from a couple thousand miles away and I would like to do. . . . . something.

I have no clue about Canadian NGO’s, charities or relief agencies, much less which ones don’t spend 90 cents on the dollar for “administrate” costs and advertising for yet more cash flow.

I do know that straight up cash is usually the most needed contribution; not blood donations, canned goods, clothes or used whatever.

You brothers north of the border – how best to help?

 

[Steve in Idaho]

These massive fires are disheartening. I have seen some of my favorite places go up in smoke over the past 30 years - some of them changed (not for better) for generations to come. So sorry for those whose lives have been damaged.