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‘Extreme’ blaze still raging
Black Press supports relief efforts BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF
CREWS SCRAMBLE AS WILDFIRE EXPLODES IN SIZE, THREATENS FORT MCMURRAY BY THE CANADIAN PRESS FORT MCMURRAY — Crews fighting to save Fort McMurray from rampaging flames water bombed the city Thursday to try to keep away a wildfire so intense they have spawned their own weather. “It was creating its own high Full coverage winds yesterday of the crisis on and even lightning Page A5-A6 was coming from the smoke clouds it created,” Chad Morrison of Alberta Forestry told a briefing in Edmonton. Officials could not update the number of structures that have burned — already at 1,600 — saying crews had not had the time. “This is an extreme fire event,” said Morrison. “Our first priority, obviously, was the community and the homes as well as the critical infrastructure.” Morrison said there were 22 water bombers at work and more were coming in, including four from Quebec. “But let me be clear: air tankers are not going to stop this fire,” he said. “It is going to continue to push through these dry conditions until we actually get some significant rain.” Crews received a small break Thursday with temperatures forecast to fall to 16 C from the low 30s.
Please see FIRE on Page A7
Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS
Chance Jones, an employee of CNRL and an evacuee from the Fort McMurray wildfires, collects donated necessities at the evacuation centre in Lac la Biche on Thursday.
Black Press and the Red Deer Advocate is offering readers the opportunity to contribute to the Fort McMurray relief efforts. Please join us in supporting the Canadian Red Cross. The federal and provincial governments are matching donations made to the Red Cross to assist the estimated 83,000 residents who were displaced by the wildfires. You can donate as little as $5 by clicking on the donate button at Black Press Supports Fort McMurray Relief Efforts at www.blackpress4good.com/ blackpress4fortmac. Alberta has declared a state of emergency as crews continue to battle the raging wildfires that have forced the largest fire evacuation in the province’s history. “Our hearts go out to the people of Fort McMurray who are suffering through the devastation of losing their homes. Newspapers and their readers have a long history of rallying to help those in need and we’d like to continue that tradition.” said Mary Kemmis, president of the Alberta/East Kootenay division of Black Press and publisher of the Red Deer Advocate. More than 1,600 homes and structures have been burned to the ground and the displaced residents are in desperate need of support. Residents who want to set up a personal crowdfunding campaign can do so through the BlackPress4Good fundraising site. BlackPress4Good will waive the regular fees (excluding credit card fees) for any personal crowdfunding campaign launched in support of friends or family members affected by the Fort McMurray fires. Black Press is the largest independently owned newspaper company in Canada with more than 150 titles in print and online.
‘It was complete chaos’ FORT MCMURRAY FAMILY RECOUNTS ESCAPE FROM CITY AS NEIGHBOURHOOD BEGAN TO BURN BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF Danna Philpott knew she had to get home to her family. She sped off on her motorcycle towards Abasand on Tuesday after hearing the wildfire had crossed the river that divides the town. She texted her husband, Brandon, who works about an hour away, and arranged to meet him at the house. Then she called her 21-year-old son and asked him to get his three sisters ready. “Driving into town it was a sight,” said Danna, a journeyman electrician. “It was pretty horrific. I didn’t think I was going to get home. All you could see was this big cloud of smoke. I knew when it jumped the river that we were in trouble.”
Embers were falling all around and it was getting difficult to breathe, she said. Once she made it home, Danna Local shelters, s e n t h e r t h r e e kennels aiding daughters — ages evacuees 15, 16, and 17 — in one car ahead be- Page A7 fore leaving with her son in the truck hauling the camper. They could see the smoke and flames reaching the homes in the neighourbood, she said. Meanwhile, the road leading to the subdivision was barricaded and her husband was stranded at the bottom of the hill.
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Please see FAMILY on Page A7
Photo by JEFF STOKOE/Advocate staff
From the left, Lily Foss, Brandon Philpott, his wife, Danna; Diana Hobbs and her children Josh and daughter Amber. Brandon and Danna, whose home was destroyed by the fire in Fort McMurray this week, are living in Blackfalds with Diana, Danna’s sister. LOTTERIES
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