Wildfire now 20km from Yellowknife, risk 'has risen' over last day

What you need to know about the N.W.T. wildfires as of 3:30 p.m. Tuesday:

• Wildfire now about 20 kilometres from Yellowknife
• Yellowknife under state of emergency
• Stanton Territorial Hospital ramping down ICU services andpatients will be transferred to emergency department or Alberta; extended care patients will be transferred south
• Evacuation orders issued for communities of Hay River, Kt'odeeche First Nation, Fort Smith, Enterprise and Jean Marie River
• Evacuation orders issued for cabin and home owners on North Prosperous Lake, North Prelude Lake, all of River Lake, and on Highway 3 from kilometres 284 and 320
• Behchoko, Edzo, Frank Channel and Kakisa under evacuation alert
• South Slave evacuees, including those in Grande Prairie, Alta., now being asked to go to St. Albert, Alta., and register at Servus Place at 400 Campbell Road
• Highways 2 and 5 are closed. Highways 1 and 3 are open. The Jean Marie River access road is closed. The N.W.T. government is asking residents not to travel by highway unless absolutely necessary
• Phone and internet interrupted through South Slave region
• People can alert loved ones that they're safe on the NWT Wildfires Safety Check Facebook group
• For more information visit the N.W.T. public safety website

A wildfire burning northwest of Yellowknife is now about 20 kilometres from the city, officials said on Tuesday morning. That means it's moved about 10 kilometres closer to the capital since a day earlier.

"The fire is not expected to reach Yellowknife in the coming days, however, risk to the city and Ndilhas risen since yesterday," reads an update from N.W.T. Fire at 11 a.m. Tuesday.

Firefighters were also expecting "significant fire behaviour" on Tuesday, with winds out of the north and northwest expected to push the fire further south and east.Smoke and falling ash was likely in Yellowknife, Ndil and Dettah on Tuesday, the update reads.

Weather conditions could become more favourableon Wednesday, officials say. There's a chance of showers forecast then, and more showers expectedon Thursday. Winds are also expected to shift on Thursday, "which should slow progression towards Yellowknife."

The Behchok-Yellowknife fire was 136,109 hectares as of Tuesday morning. After the firebreached control linesto the southwest toward Boundary Creek, N.W.T. Fire saidMonday morning thebreach was "significant" and their top priority was to contain it.

More than a hundred members of the Canadian Armed Forces were also on their way to Yellowknife on Tuesday to help fight the fires.

On Monday, the City of Yellowknife declared a local state of emergency. City staff said the declaration would allow the city to use local contractors to help protect the city by helping buildfire breaks.

The city is not under an evacuation alert or order.

No 'line in the sand' for evacuating Yellowknife, mayor says

Speaking to CBC's The Trailbreakerearlier on Tuesday morning, Mayor Rebecca Alty said there's no defined "line in the sand" for when an alert or order might be issued. She said it can depend on things such as weather forecasts,wind speedsand other factors.

"There's a number of variables, a number of different scenarios ... you have to take a look at the fire as a whole," she said.

"We're working hard on the fire breaks. If anything were to change, we'dcommunicate it with residents."

In the event of a city-wide evacuation, Alty said "then you'd be looking at aircraft. So it is about that escalating up."

'Tough' conditions in Yellowknife amid heavy smoke, mayor says

1 year ago

Duration 7:27

Yellowknife declared a local state of emergency Monday night as officials measure risks from wildfires outside the capital. Mayor Rebecca Alty says there's a lot of anxiety among residents as the city contends with thick smoke, darkness and deteriorating air quality.

She also urged anxious residents not to spend too much time thinking abouthypothetical scenarios, and asked them to stay calm.

"I think it's important to not work yourself up too far of like, 'But then what happens? But then what happens?" Alty said.

"I don't think it's helpful to actually work through all these scenarios through the media or with your friends and family. I think it's important to make sure we stay calm and focus on what's current today."

Residents decry lack of evacuation information

On Facebook, Yellowknife residents have been questioning the city's decision not to publicize an city-wide evacuation plan.

"I feel like our evacuation plan should have been made available to the public weeks ago," Alexis Goulding told CBC News over messenger."

"The rationale that it is to protect the city from panicking really doesn't give us enough credit."

Gouldingsaid it's "absurd" that Yellowknife has not put out a call for people to leave if they're willing to.

"I understand that the city keeps reiterating we are not in immediate danger, but why wait until then?"

Meanwhile, an evacuation order issued earlier for property owners along the Ingraham Trail east of Yellowknife has now been downgraded to an evacuation alert. Officials said they had seen "less progression than was possible" on the 40,723-hectare fire.

The evacuation alert covers the area including north Propserous Lake, north Prelude Lake and all of River Lake. Officials said downgrading the evacuation order "for now" will allow property owner to return and run their sprinklers. They advised, however, that things may change quickly.

Health services reduction

In an update Tuesday afternoon, the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority (NTHSSA) announcedservice reduction in Yellowknife.

The Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Stanton Territorial Hospital will have reduced service "as a precautionary measure to minimize the number of complex patients who would require transfer in the event of a worsening fire situation in the Yellowknife area," reads the announcement.

Patients that require ICU-level care will go to the hospital's emergency department or be transferred via air ambulance to Alberta.

Patients in the extended care unit will also be transferred to southern facilities.

Finally, the hospital's operating room services will be kept for urgent and emergency cases only.

NTHSSA said residents who are affected would be notified directly of the changes.

The health authority will also be moving evacuees who were atthe old Stanton hospital building. The building had been set up as a long term care site.

It said the move was to allow "for capacity to be preserved while the current evacuation plays out."

Families of those evacuees will be notified of their new location.

NTHSSA said the changes are being made "out of an abundance of caution, and to ensure a state of readiness should the wildfire situation escalate" and not because of any "increased level of threat."