Update 35: 2016 Wildfires (June 6 at 4:30 p.m.)

Current situation:

There was no significant growth in the Fort McMurray wildfire yesterday and the fire is now nearly 70 per cent contained. It is estimated to cover 581,695 hectares, including the Saskatchewan side, with a perimeter estimate of 984 kilometres.
Extreme burning conditions still exist for some areas of the fire.
There are 2,804 firefighters and support staff, 99 helicopters and 236 pieces of heavy equipment battling fires across the province, with an estimate of about 442 kilometres of dozer guard completed.
There are 10 active wildfires in Alberta, with one out of control (Fort McMurray).
Alberta Forestry is providing assistance with a wildfire in Thorhild County.
Wildfire crews from around the world are supporting Alberta’s efforts, including 299 firefighters from South Africa and 41 from Mexico.
Environmental monitoring continues in the Fort McMurray region. Results of environmental testing data are now available online.
A telephone town hall will be held this evening from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Weather:

Forecast for the Fort McMurray area today:
- Approximately 27 C, 20-25 per cent humidity, with winds southeast at 20-25 km/h, gusting to 40 km/h; 30 per cent change of showers overnight with a risk of thunderstorms.

Property Visit Program:

For safety reasons, residents are not permitted to visit destroyed homes on their own.
Visits to homes identified as “destroyed or unsafe to occupy” outside the restricted areas of Abasand, Beacon Hill and Waterways started Sunday.
The specialized disaster response team will continue to work with residents to visit properties.
Residents must book visits through the PULSE line by calling 780-743-7000. More information about the Property Visit Program is available online through the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo.

Information for residents in Abasand, Waterways and Beacon Hill:

Visits to destroyed properties in Abasand, Beacon Hill and Waterways will begin on June 8, 2016.
A tackifier called Posi-Shell is being applied to debris in damaged areas. A tackifier is a powdery substance that dries to a hard shell, which prevents ash and other contaminants from becoming airborne. It is an environmentally safe, non-toxic compound that is commonly used in landfills.
Tackifier application is complete in all affected neighbourhoods. Reapplication will occur after sifting operations are complete.

Re-entry information:

The phased, voluntary re-entry is now complete for all zones.
Before returning, renters should contact their landlords to determine if their units are ready for occupancy.
Fire crews need safe access to air space. Drones or other airborne devices may not be flown without the approval of the Regional Emergency Operations Centre.
Five information centres are open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Since voluntary re-entry began on June 1, a total of 34,474 people have visited information centres.

Transportation plan update:

Yesterday, nearly 3,800 vehicles travelled northbound on Highways 63 and 881.
Traffic is free flowing on Highways 63 and 881 in northbound and southbound directions, with good driving conditions.
Following the successful voluntary re-entry between June 1 and 4, RCMP and sheriffs have normalized their patrols on routes between Edmonton and Fort McMurray.
Please travel safely. Don’t take chances, obey the rules of the road and follow the speed limit.
511 Alberta continues to be the best source for the latest highway information.

Information Centres are located at:

Fort McMurray Composite High School, 9803 King Street (wildfire relief funding debit cards available at this centre)
Westwood High School/YMCA, 221 Tundra Drive (wildfire relief funding debit cards available at this centre)
Holy Trinity High School, 230 Powder Drive
Oil Sands Discovery Centre, 515 MacKenzie Boulevard – CLOSING END OF DAY MONDAY

Residents are welcome to visit any of the information centres, regardless of their location.

Information Centres in Anzac, Vista Ridge and Eagle Ridge closed on Sunday, June 5.

Services:

Although some grocery, hardware and convenience stores are open, returning residents should bring basic necessities to last for up to 14 days, including food, drinking water and prescriptions.
While the waste-water treatment plant is becoming fully operational, residents are asked to help ensure it is not overwhelmed.
- Please use water wisely – keep showers, laundry and vehicle washing to a minimum.

Information for all affected residents:

Telephone town halls have been scheduled for Monday, June 6 and Wednesday, June 8 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Evacuees who have registered their cellphone numbers and emergency contact numbers with the Red Cross will be phoned before 7 p.m. on the evening of the call.
Reports of possible price gouging in the community are being monitored. As of Monday, June 6, Service Alberta has deployed a consumer investigation team to help people with issues such as scams and price gouging for renovations, accommodations, home inspections, clean-up contracts, etc.
At the request of local authorities, the Alberta Emergency Management Agency has fixed prices for hotels and rental properties at April 30 rates. Anyone with concerns about price gouging should contact the municipality’s PULSE information line at 1-780-743-7000.
Wildfire smoke may have damaged sensors in smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Returning residents are encouraged to check or clean their detectors, replace the batteries and test to ensure they are working properly.
The Red Cross is providing financial travel assistance for those who are not receiving it through their insurance or workplace. Additional financial assistance for people returning to Fort McMurray is also available. Contact the Red Cross for details at 1-888-350-6070 or redcross.ca.
Out-of-province evacuees received an email on May 31 with detailed instructions on how to apply for wildfire relief funding (evacuees who stayed in Alberta received this funding as debit cards).
Applications will be accepted at more than 600 locations across Canada for out-of-province evacuees until June 15. Location information is available online at the Government of Canada website at servicecanada.gc.ca.
Evacuees will need to attend in-person with government-issued photo identification and documentation to substantiate their claims and applications.
For more information on services, out-of-province supports and updates, please visit the Government of Alberta emergency website at:emergency.alberta.ca.
AHS has health-care teams at several reception centres, and help is also available by calling Health Link toll-free at 811 or the Mental Health Helpline at 1-877-303-2642.
Licensed child care will not be available in Fort McMurray immediately upon re-entry. Government is working with child-care providers to support getting their programs operational as quickly as possible once operators re-enter the community. Families who need child care may want to consider waiting until licensed and approved options are available before they bring their children back to Fort McMurray.

Health information:

Restoration of the Northern Lights Regional Health Centre continues. As of June 1, the emergency department, laboratory services and diagnostic imaging have been available. Since re-entry, the hospital has not seen a significant increase in patient volume.
Alberta Health Services is providing 24/7 basic health services and emergency and urgent care at the Fort McMurray Urgent Care Centre, located at the Syncrude Sport and Wellness Centre (9908 Penhorwood Street). The urgent-care facility will run until the hospital is fully operational.
Residents with the following medical issues should not return until the hospital is fully operational:
- those with chronic medical conditions, such as asthma;
- those who require regular primary care, home care or specialized treatment such as dialysis or cancer;
- those who were recently discharged from hospital or who have had a transplant; and
- women who are more than 36 weeks pregnant or who have a high-risk pregnancy.
More than 100 mental-health staff trained in psychological first aid, along with a team from British Columbia that specializes in disaster response, are available through the information centres. The centres will have walk-in appointments and are open every day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Community addiction and mental-health crisis teams are available at the hospital. Counselling for addiction and mental health, including walk-in appointments, is available at at the Syncrude Sports and Wellness Centre.
A roving community wellness team is providing mental health support. Staff are available from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. and on call overnight. They can be reached by calling 780-370-0182 or 780-792-6378 or HealthLink at 811.
The boil-water advisory has been lifted for the Lower Townsite area of Fort McMurray, which is described as the area north of the Hangingstone River, west of the Clearwater River, east of Memorial Drive up to Confederation Bridge, and including MacDonald Island.
The boil-water advisory remains in effect for all other areas. More information is available here: http://www.albertahealthservices.ca/news/page13205.aspx
The air-quality advisory issued by AHS for the Fort McMurray area remains in effect. Residents are advised to take appropriate precautions.
Real-time air-quality data and information is available at www.environment.alberta.ca/apps/aqhi/aqhi.aspx.

Occupational Health and Safety:

Safety information for employers and employees working in areas affected by wildfires can be found online at work.alberta.ca/occupational-health-safety/fort-mcmurray-wildfires.html.