The authorities called on suburban residents to remain on alert to evacuate their homes at any moment.
Canadian authorities announced Monday that more than 16,000 people had to evacuate their homes in the province of Nova Scotia in the east of the country, after one of the many fires raging in the country threatened residential areas near the city of Halifax.
The fire, which is still out of control northwest of Halifax, has not progressed since Sunday night, when authorities declared a state of emergency.
The authorities called on suburban residents to remain on alert to evacuate their homes at any moment.
Burnt houses
“We really thought we were going to die,” said Marianne and her husband, Peter Gillespie, who found themselves engulfed in flames.
They told the CBC public television network that they fled in their car while “ash and sparks were falling on the car”.
In turn, one of the volunteer firefighters told Radio Canada, with tears in his eyes, how he felt, “driving through burning cars and houses.”
Local television channels broadcast scenes showing plumes of smoke surrounding the area and many homes and cars that had turned into ashes due to the fire. However, the fire did not cause any human injuries.
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston described the province as “under pressure”, while Halifax Mayor Mike Savage said the fire was “unprecedented”.
Savage added during a press conference: “We have not expanded the perimeter (the evacuation area) since yesterday, which gives hope that the situation may have stabilized,” stressing, however, that “it is still dangerous.”
The authorities said that although the winds that fanned the fire changed direction on Monday and returned the fire to the direction it came from, this was not enough to stave off the danger.
She added that rain is the only way for the firefighting teams to control the fire, but no rain is expected this week.
And Monday, there were wildfires raging in eight of Canada’s 13 provinces and territories.
In recent years, western Canada has been repeatedly exposed to extreme weather events, aggravated by global warming.
