Trudeau praises firefighters efforts to save oil sands city

Trudeau praises firefighters efforts to save oil sands city

FORT MCMURRAY, Alberta (AP) — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says most Canadians have yet to grasp the lengths to which firefighters went to save nearly 90 percent of the oil sands capital of Fort McMurray from a massive wildfire that forced the evacuation of more than 88,000 people.


Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, left, and Fort McMurray Fire Chief Darby Allen look over the devastation during a visit to Fort McMurray, Canada., Friday, May 13, 2016. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
May 14, 2016

Trudeau visited the devastated northern Alberta city on Friday almost two weeks after the 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 took a helicopter ride over a patchwork of devastated neighborhoods, where some homes still stand while others burned to their foundations. Alberta officials say 2,432 structures have been destroyed, 530 damaged and 25,000 saved. Despite the savage fire, officials said 85-90 percent of the city has been saved.

"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 of Fort McMurray.
"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."
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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 (2,410 square kilometers) 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.

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