Edmonton – In an effort to help mitigate some of the common calls the Operational Communications Centre (OCC) receive during the wildfires, the Alberta RCMP hosted a press conference at “K” Division Headquarters to provide Albertans and evacuees with the best resources for their most common questions:
· For questions concerning highway closures or road conditions due to heavy smoke, contact Alberta 511 at 511.Alberta.ca or call 511.
· For questions regarding evacuation reception centres, please visit Alberta.ca/emergency. The current evacuation centres are as follows:
– The Slave Lake Legacy Centre
– The Misery Mountain Ski Hill in Peace River
– La Crete Heritage Centre
– Grande Prairie Regional College
– Fort Vermillion Community Cultural Complex
Note: All evacuees should register with an evacuation reception centre, if alternate accommodations have been found. This is to help ensure authorities can reach you if the situation changes.
· For questions regarding pets, please call High Level Animal Control at 780-926-2201. For evacuees within the Wabasca, Alta. area, please fill out an online form on the Alberta Animal Disaster Response Facebook group, or text 403-869-4964 and provide your name, contact number, number of animals missing, address they were last seen, and a brief description of your pet.
· For questions regarding livestock, please note that the County of Northern Lights is providing temporary access hours from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. for residents to enter the property to handle livestock care. Residents must register for a temporary access pass at the County Office.
· For questions on returning home, please follow the Government of Alberta Twitter page hashtags #ABFire and #ABemerg
Fast facts:
· The Alberta RCMP has deployed approximately 40 additional members from various detachments across the province help augment existing detachments to ensure the safety of Albertans and to protect their property.
· In 2018, the OCCs took more than 910,217 calls for service with 220,608 (25%) coming from 911. Of these calls, 2,609 were generated as high priority or urgent police requests.
Quotes
· “On behalf of the Alberta RCMP, I would like to thank our provincial partners, first responders and continued assistance from firefighters for their tireless assistance. I would also like to thank all the well-wishes and heartfelt comments the Alberta RCMP has received. These messages have not gone unnoticed.” – Supt. Terry McLachlan, Alberta RCMP.