カナダ西部の山火事、徐々に鎮静化

【バルセロナＡＦＰ＝時事】カナダ西部アルバータ州で、山火事が続いている。当局は１０日、気温の低下や国内外からの増援部隊の到着により、鎮静化に向かっていると明らかにした。（写真はナダ・アルバータ州で発生した山火事の被害の様子）
　当局によると、州内で確認されていた山火事は数日前は１１０件だったが、現在は７６件となっている。うち２３件は今だ制御できていないという。また、火災に見舞われた地域から避難した人の数は、先週末の約３万人から２万４０００人に減少した。
　国内数州のほか、米オレゴン州やアラスカ州からも増援が送り込まれた。当局は、週末にかけ気温が戻れば、再び山火事が発生する恐れがあると警告している。
　出火原因は今春の高温と乾燥の影響もあるが、大半は放火・失火だという。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/05/11-15:48）

A lull in high temperatures brought some relief on Wednesday from wildfires in Alberta in western Canada as reinforcements arrived to help battle the blazes.
In total, 76 forest and brush fires remained active in the province compared to 110 a few days ago, authorities said. Twenty-three are still considered uncontrolled.
Several Canadian provinces -- as well as the US states of Oregon and Alaska -- sent reinforcements to fight the wildfires, which authorities said could flare again as high temperatures return over the weekend.
We're very happy to have new resources coming in from our colleagues across Canada and colleagues in the United States. And I think that's going to be a much needed boost for firefighters who have been at this, some of them around the clock, for quite a while, Christie Tucker, a spokeswoman for the relief effort, said at a news conference.
The number of evacuees from fire-hit areas dipped to 24,000, down from almost 30,000 last weekend, authorities said.
At least one oil company, Tourmaline, has reopened seven of its nine facilities in Alberta, one of the world?s largest oil producing regions. The other two facilities were expected to start up in the next couple of days, it said in a statement.
Alberta has experienced a hot, dry spring that has been conducive to fire outbreaks. The vast majority of the fires are human-caused.
Mayor Allan Gamble of Parkland County voiced relief that all of our evacuated residents returned home and two highways leading to the county have reopened.
In the northern part of the province, some Indigenous villages were deeply affected, such as the Cree community of Little Red River.
There?s been a huge loss of infrastructure, no lives thank God, but 4,000 people are evacuated, over 150 homes... have been destroyed or demolished, said Patty Hajdu, federal minister of Indigenous Services.
In Yellowhead County, including Evansburg (west of Edmonton), residents were allowed to return home on Wednesday morning.
The wildfire risk has been reduced thanks to firefighting efforts and the shift in weather, the county said in a statement.
However, it warned that wildfires may still be active in the area.
In Fox Creek, cooler temperatures and reduced wind allowed firefighters to fortify containment lines to prevent fires from spreading.
Don't let the skyline and current clear skies deceive you. This fire is out of control and burns deep into the ground. It is a sleeping giant. The situation can change quickly, the county said in an advisory.