CLIMATE
Kanada’s Ölsand-Stadt ist durch Waldbrand in Gefahr
May 15, 2024 -
Ein großer Waldbrand näherst sich langsam der wichtigen kanadischen Ölsand-Stadt Fort McMurray. Rund 6.000 Personen in vier Vororten wurden bereits angewiesen, die Stadt zu verlassen.
The fire, fuelled by tinder-dry conditions and high winds, has been threatening the city in the western province of Alberta since last week. It is now about 7.5 km away from the Fort McMurray landfill, authorities said on Tuesday.
They also expressed hope that a favourable wind shift was expected Tuesday night, which could lead to winds from the west-northwest pushing the fire away from Fort McMurray.
In addition to the harm that may befall people and property, the fire puts a large portion of Canada’s oil production at risk. Fort McMurray is the hub for the country's oil-sands output and a huge wildfire in 2016 forced the evacuation of 90,000 residents and shut in more than 1 million barrels per day (bpd) of output, Reuters said.