[RedneckR0nin]

Sad to see this happen and just signed up to put up to 4 people that might need a home for up to 6 months!

The northern Alberta town of Slave Lake is partially in ruins after a devastating, fast-moving wildfire caught community officials off guard.

The damage is catastrophic. Hundreds of homes, churches and businesses have been destroyed. So too has the town hall, library and radio station. The power is out, cellphone service has been spotty, and 7,000 residents were forced to flee through a single road, the only highway open as fires rage on all sides.

Fire crews had little control – they managed to save the south part of the town, but remained at the mercy of strong winds, gusting up to 100 kilometres an hour.

“It’s extremely devastating, our loss. It’s difficult to articulate,” Slave Lake Mayor Karina Pillay-Kinnee said late Sunday. “A lot of things we’re battling now.”

There were no reports of injuries.

About 70 firefighters from the Edmonton area headed north to assist in the fight, and provincial officials say equipment and roughly 200 firefighters from B.C. and Ontario are expected to arrive by Tuesday to help.

What’s perhaps most striking, however, is the pace at which the catastrophe took hold. By mid-afternoon Sunday, there was no evacuation order. In fact, officials were cautiously optimistic, even as two wildfires burned on the outskirts of town.

“We kind of thought the thing was getting under control,” said Mel Knight, an Alberta cabinet minister in charge of forest-fire response who was in Slave Lake Sunday.

“What happened [Sunday] afternoon is the winds picked up.”

The strong gusts delivered the community a double blow. The winds stoked fast-moving flames, which jumped two highways before reaching Slave Lake. Meanwhile, they also grounded the province’s water bomber airplanes, a key part of fire defence.

“The timing, it just occurred so fast. A difficulty communicating – all our firefighters and resources were actively fighting fires in numerous areas around our community,” Ms. Pillay-Kinnee said. “It just happened so quickly.”

Over the next four hours, the fire spread almost unchallenged. That’s when the town fell into a communications meltdown – critically, the radio station, which had been broadcasting evacuation notices, lost its power and went off the air, hours before burning down itself.

At least 30 per cent of the town has burned down, the mayor said Sunday.

At first, residents were trapped – fires had closed all the roads out of town. “We are landlocked at the moment,” Ms. Pillay-Kinnee said in a text message just after 6 p.m.

But later Sunday evening, around 7:30 p.m. local time, officials opened Highway 2, which would take residents east through a highway and dirt road, away from the flames.

“Mandatory evacuation,” Ms. Pillay-Kinnee said at 10 p.m.

One thing is certain – Slave Lake, as residents knew it, is a thing of the past. Thousands have fled to nearby communities, grabbing precious valuables and unsure when – or to what – they’ll return.

“The smoke is terrifying, black and just billowing. I called everyone I could get a hold if and asked them to leave if they hadn't already,” Slave Lake resident Cindy Martin, 27, who fled with her daughter and three cats, said in an e-mail. “I'm very much in panic. At this point even if our home is OK, there will not be much of the community to go back to. Who even knows if we will have a job to go back to? Our entire lives were in Slave and now it will never be the same and the fire doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon.”

Many questioned the delays in responding, wondering why a voluntary evacuation order wasn’t put into place earlier in the day

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle2023343/

[niknik]

It's just canada, god hates canada. Definitely not worth a double thread, and on top of that your looking to hook up with someone that your supposed to be helping. On top of that you're a photographer who post these pics of clients on a death site. Good ethics? Drowning wouldn't be so bad for you.

[sherrimccharles]

Yeah this is pretty close to where I live and very close to where my husband is working. And Im canadian and I dont feel like god hates me. Actually Im feelin pretty good. Hahahahahahaha. Canada is the best and it never gets old hahahaha. UUuugh, I feel sorry for you.

[candymosh]

That sucks Ronin. I kind of quick read though it but I didn't seem to see any mention of any fatalities. Do they know if there were any yet or did everyone make it out ok?

[sherrimccharles]

Originally Posted by candymosh2 ↗

That sucks Ronin. I kind of quick read though it but I didn't seem to see any mention of any fatalities. Do they know if there were any yet or did everyone make it out ok?

Nobody died as far as I know. Thats what they said this morning

[RedneckR0nin]

not one fatality so far...lucky i think

[RedneckR0nin]

This was shot today by a friend of mine!

[RedneckR0nin]

[Eaton]

Originally Posted by niknik ↗

It's just canada, god hates canada.

[Seven Of Nine]

I suppose if one believes God exists one may believe God is able to hate. I'm okay with that. I mean really, if based on a single fatality you are more at ease in your belief that "God hates Canada" you must really believe "God hates the USA", you know, because of the tragic number of deaths caused during this storm season (rolling eyes and muffling my laughter).

*The laughter is not in reference to the loss of life it is in reference to the lack of common sense in the statement made by niknik.

Good old Canada, action plans for evacuation that work and people who listen.