(CNN) More than 13,000 people living in the Canadian province of Alberta have been evacuated from wildfires that are seeing unusually hot weather and high winds, emergency officials said.
At least 78 wildfires are burning in Western Province, 19 of which are wildfires Burning out of control Stephane Lacroix, director of the region’s emergency management agency, told reporters during a press conference Friday.
“It’s a stark reminder of how unpredictable and powerful wildfires are,” Lacroix said.
Some residents of the community of Fox Lake, where the fire is raging, had to be evacuated by helicopter, said Christie Tucker, information division manager for Alberta Wildfire. On Friday morning, dozens of firefighters were battling the Fox Lake blaze, which had burned nearly 11,000 acres, officials said.
In Drayton Valley, firefighters, helicopters and air tankers battled the out-of-control fire, which had burned more than 3,700 acres, Tucker said.
Officials in Yellowhead County and the city of Edson have ordered immediate evacuations due to wildfires burning in Alberta, Edson officials tweeted. According to the community’s website, the town of Edson is home to just under 9,000 people.
Friday night, Alberta officials Mandatory evacuation order extended At Lac Ste. Anne County, about 50 miles northwest of Edmonton. Officials said the evacuation of residents could last up to three days.
Parts of Big Lakes County — home to about 5,600 residents — were ordered to evacuate, including residents east of the West Prairie River and south of Highway 749 and Township Road 724. It is not clear how many people were affected by the evacuation.
Officials asked Banana Belt residents to prepare “their properties by removing piles of wood, debris and plowing around the property if possible.”
“Life and health are at risk,” Big Lakes County officials said said in a post.
“Temperatures have been 10 to 15 degrees above normal for a while now,” Tucker said. “We still don’t have green grass and leaves across the province, which means the land is very dry.”
Tucker said the northern province is experiencing extremely hot conditions and high winds, and residents are not allowed to have open logs on public or private land while the fire is burning.
There have been 348 wildfires in Alberta since January, burning more than 61,776 acres, Tucker said.
“This is more wildfire activity for this time of year than we’ve seen at any time recently,” Tucker noted.
Order of Evictions in British Columbia
In northeastern British Columbia, the Peace River Regional District is its extension eviction order for that Boundary Lake Wildfire Saturday morning.
The BC Wildfire Service is “continuing to respond to the Boundary Lake wildfire located on the BC/Alberta border east of #FortStJohn,” the agency tweeted, adding that the wildfire was estimated at 4,695 acres.
“The area is affected by heavy smoke and visibility is poor. Aviation resources are currently being challenged by poor visibility. Drivers are advised to avoid Highway 64 due to poor visibility,” the BC Forest Fire Service said.
According to Peace River officials, the initial evacuation order was “expanded as a result of aggressive fire behavior and danger to life safety”.
County officials said the order includes the Alberta border on the east and parts of Imperial Avenue on the south.
In southeastern British Columbia, there were local states of emergency and evacuation orders Published this week by the Territorial District of the Kootenay Boundary “because of imminent danger to the life and property of the inhabitants or persons present.”
“#BCWildfire Service is ready to respond to flooding across the province this weekend,” the agency tweeted Friday, adding, “20 crews dispatched to #CacheCreekBC area, 33 crews stationed in #GrandForksBC area, 20 additional. Crews stand by to assist if needed.” “
CNN’s Melissa Alonso contributed to this report.
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