When we reported on the Fort McMurray wildfires on Thursday, the fires had burnt up an area bigger than all five New York City boroughs combined. Residents in the Alberta, Canada city have had to evacuate.
Now, according to the CBC, the wildfire is expected not only to continue, but to grow and reach the Saskatchewan border by Saturday night. Says senior wildfire official Chad Morrison:
The prevailing wind is blowing from the southwest, pushing the fire northeast away from Fort McMurray. The huge fire could reach the Saskatchewan border, 90 kilometres away, by the end of the day and will likely continue long after any danger to communities has passed, perhaps for many months, Morrisons said.
At the very least, the fire is moving away from people.
So far, according to Reuters, all 88,000 Fort McMurray residents have had to evacuate, and were urged to go cities like Calgary and Edmonton while officials still fight the blaze. Whole neighborhoods were wiped out by the fire, and insurance losses could exceed $7 billion.
And in some heartwarming and bizarre stories to come out of this tragedy, many residents were unable to leave with many of their possessions, but these children were able to take their favorite blankets and stuffed animals, as the CBC reports. On the other end of the spectrum, an Edmonton strip club is offering free lap dances to those who escaped, according to Vice.