Alberta wildfires force 24,000 people to evacuate their homes

Premier Danielle Smith provided an update on the wildfire situation Saturday afternoon, noting over 24,500 Albertans have been evacuated from their homes.

There are 103 active wildfires burning 121,000 hectares, with 24 classified as out of control.

One of the largest evacuations in the province is in the Edson area, including the town’s 8,000 residents. People in that area are being told to evacuate to Jasper or Hinton, as parts of Highway 16 east of the area are closed.

The fire that forced the evacuation of Drayton Valley has grown to 1,500 hectares in size and is considered out of control.

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Smith added that the province will be making a decision today on whether or not to put in place a provincial state of emergency due to the wildfires.

You can see the full list of fire bans in the province here, and any current Alberta Emergency Alerts can be found here.